Personal Injury Law

Infant Death Prompts Recall of More than 1.5 Million Cribs

By Louthian Law Firm

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced the voluntary recall of about 1.5 million cribs following the death of an 8-month-old child.

Two separate drop side cribs made by Delta Enterprise Corp., of New York, New York are involved in the recall notice.

The CPSC said 600,000 drop side cribs were being recalled because the crib?s drop side can detach when the spring peg is not engaged, causing an entrapment and suffocation risk to infants and toddlers. An 8-month-old child suffocated when the drop side of his crib detached. CPSC also said there had been one child entrapment and one incident in which the drop side detached due to a disengaged spring peg.

The recall involves all Delta drop side cribs manufactured prior to 2006 that use ?Crib Trigger Lock with Spring Peg? drop side hardware design. The recalled model numbers and country of origin include: 4340, 4343, 4520, 4600, 4620, 4624, 4625, 4629, 4660, 4665, 4720, 4750, 4751, 4850, 4855, 4857, 4880, 4920, 4925-2, 4925-2B, 4925-6, 4980, and 8605. The model number, country of origin and manufacture dates are located on top of the mattress support board. The recalled cribs have Delta?s name and address on the mattress support boards and Delta?s logo on the teether rail.

The cribs, made in China, were sold at major U.S. retailers from January 2000 through January 2007.

The recall notice can be found here.

The second recall involving 985,000 Delta Enterprise Drop Side Cribs is to replace missing safety pegs. Failure to use or install safety pegs can cause an entrapment and suffocation risk to infants and toddlers.

In addition to the death of an 8-month-old child, there have been two entrapments and nine disengagement incidents in cribs where the safety pegs were missing.

The recall involves all Delta cribs manufactured in Taiwan or Indonesia, with the ?Crib Trigger Lock with Safety Peg? drop side hardware design. These model numbers and country of origin can be located on the mattress support board label: 4320, 4340, 4500, 4520, 4530, 4532, 4540, 4542, 4550, 4551, 4580, 4600, 4620, 4624 (production dates 01/06 thru 11/07), 4640, 4660, 4720, 4735, 4742, 4750 (production dates 01/95 thru 12/00), 4760, 4770, 4780, 4790, 4820, 4840, 4850, 4860, 4880, 4890, 4892, 4900, 4910, 4920, 4925-2, 4925-6, 4930, 4940, 4943, 4944, 4947, 4948, 4949, 4950, 4958, 4963, 4968, 4969, 4980.

The recalled cribs have date codes ranging from 1995 through December 2005 and one model (4624) was made in 2007. The model numbers are located on the top of the mattress support board.

The cribs, which were made in Taiwan and Indonesia, were sold at major retailers, including Walmart, Kmart and Target.com from January 1995 through September 2007 for about $100. These cribs have also been found to be sold secondhand. Cribs currently sold at retail are not involved.

The second recall notice is here.

The CPSC and Delta have urged parents and caregivers to immediately stop using cribs that are missing a safety peg on any leg of the crib and contact Delta to receive a free, easy-to-install repair kit. The kit will include safety pegs in a bold color and warning labels to be affixed to the mattress board. Consumers with cribs that have all safety pegs installed may continue to use the cribs; however, CPSC recommends that these consumers contact Delta for the repair kit for future assembly purposes. Call Delta toll-free at (800) 816-5304 or log on www.cribrecallcenter.com to order the free replacement kit.

If you or someone you care about has been injured by a defective product, you have the right to ask the manufacturer for money to cover your medical bills, property damage, pain and suffering and any permanent disability or loss. In order to protect that right, you should speak with the experienced product injuries attorneys at the Louthian Law Firm as soon as possible. We have more than 40 years of experience helping injured South Carolinians seek justice, and we?re committed to ensuring that you get the best legal representation possible. For a free consultation, call us today at 1-866-410-5656.

Full post as published by South Carolina Lawyer Blog on October 22, 2008 (boomark / email).