IKEA Recalls Unstable Dressers After Crushing Deaths of Three Toddlers

In February 2014, the mother of a two-year-old boy walked into his bedroom to get him dressed for the day and was surprised to see his dresser toppled over and lying on the floor. She looked around the room, but could not find her toddler. She frantically started moving things around and was startled to see his little head sticking out from under the dresser. He had been crushed to death in his own home in his own room with his own dresser. A dresser purchased for him at IKEA.

Just a few months later, a second toddler died from a similar incident. This prompted IKEA to issue a notice in July 2015 warning buyers of the potential for the chests toppling over since they were top-heavy. The company offered free wall anchoring kits to all purchasers of the chests and dressers. This involved approximately seven million dressers manufactured by MALM and about 20 million chests and dressers made by other manufacturers and sold by IKEA.

In February 2016, a third toddler was crushed to death when an IKEA MALM 6-drawer chest toppled over and trapped him underneath it. As a result, on June 28, 2016, IKEA issued a recall of all 29 million dressers that were sold at its stores between 2002 and June 2016. The company will give a complete refund to all purchasers of the dressers or give them a free wall anchoring kit. The USA IKEA president has said to parents regarding the dressers, “Please take them out of the room.”

Dangers of Unanchored Dressers

In looking back at records over the years, IKEA had received three other reports of toddlers dying after they were crushed by dressers toppling over: one in 1989, another in 2002 and yet another one in 2007. During that time, they also received reports that 41 dressers in total had toppled over injuring 19 children in addition to the ones who were killed.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), 26 children are killed every year by tipping over chests. Every 24 minutes, a child is injured and taken to an emergency room due to injuries suffered when furniture toppled over on top of them. An innocent child reaches for something on the top of the chest, and the unanchored piece of furniture falls on top of them. The lucky ones are only injured.

Contact A Product Liability Attorney for Help

If you are a parent whose child was killed or injured by a tipping over dresser from Ikea, or by a piece of furniture by any manufacturer, contact a product liability attorney who will evaluate your case and help you decide how to proceed.