When one thinks of a defective children’s product, they may think of cribs with drop-down railings or small toys that are choking hazards. Yet there are many every-day products that can pose a significant hazard to children in Chicago and nationwide, particularly when they are defective. It is important that these defective products are taken off of store shelves as soon as possible. Unfortunately, as one recent recall shows, simply issuing a recall doesn’t mean that an unsafe product will stay out of the hands of children.
Recently, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, alongside the company Ace Bayou have reissued a second recall of over two million bean bag chairs. Two children lost their lives after unzipping the chair, crawling inside and then suffocating on the foam pellets inside. One victim was a 13-year-old boy, and the other was a three-year-old girl. A six-year-old boy also reportedly opened the bag and got some foam pellets in his nose and mouth, but he survived.
The chairs have both an outer zipper that is lacking a pull tab, and an inner zipper. A repair kit is being offered at no cost that would make it so that the zipper cannot be used. As of right now, only about 790 consumers have received the repair kit. The bean bag chairs at issue were offered for sale from 1995 to 2013.
No parent deserves to lose a child to a defective product. Unfortunately, as was the case here, initial recalls are not always effective. When such deaths occur, it is important for parents to remember that they may have legal options for recovery. A Chicago products liability attorney may be able to educate consumers as to their rights when there is a death due to a defective product.