Third Child Dies After Ikea Dresser Tips Over on Him

Last July, IKEA, in conjunction with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), announced a recall of 27 million chests and dressers with their MALM collection because they can tip over and crush children if they aren’t property anchored to the wall. The recall came after a year year-old boy from Pennsylvania died after a MALM chest tipped over and fatally pinned him against his bed. A few months later, a 23 month-old from Washington died after he became trapped beneath a 3-drawer MALM chest that tipped over. There were also 14 other reports of tip-over incidents leading to four injuries, and three additional deaths since 1989.

On April 18, 2016, a Minnesota toddler was the latest child to die after an IKEA MALM dresser tipped over. The six-drawer chest had fallen on top of the 22 month-old. The family hadn’t heard about the repair program last July and is pursuing a lawsuit against the retailer for not issuing a stronger warning. The CPSC and IKEA are investigating the death.

According to the CPSC, a child dies every two weeks and a child is injured every 24 minutes in the United States from furniture or TVs tipping over. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured by a product subject to recall, the attorneys at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner can help. Contact us today at (713) 222-7211 or toll free at 713-222-7211 for a free, confidential consultation.