The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, or CPSC, recently issued a recall of approximately 36,000 strollers manufactured by Chicago-based company Kolcraft Enterprises, Inc.
The hinges on the Contours Options three-and four-wheeled strollers that are used to move the handlebars reportedly have caused personal injuries.
When the hinge is being locked or unlocked, an opening is created where a child or adult’s finger can become trapped, ultimately causing severe damage. Consumers have to unlock and lock the hinge if they want to adjust the handlebars on the stroller. The hinge can cause lacerations and even amputations.
According to the CPSC, five accidents in total were reported involving injuries resulting from the hinge on the stroller. Three of the injuries involved children whose fingertips were amputated by the hinge. Adults suffered the other two injuries. Their fingers were either “smashed or lacerated,” according to the CPSC.
Unfortunately, injuries caused by strollers are fairly common. A study published in Pediatrics, the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, showed children three years old and younger suffered over 64,000 injuries caused by strollers from 1994 to 1998. According to the study, the injuries primarily occurred due to falls and resulted in some type of head or face injury. The report found that, although less common than head trauma, damage to extremities accounted for 11 percent of the stroller-related injuries.
The CPSC is responsible for “protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of consumer products under the agency’s jurisdiction.”
According to the CPSC, “consumer product incidents,” which include deaths, injuries and property damage, cost the United States over $900 billion each year.
Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, “Strollers Recalled by Kolcraft Due to Fingertip Amputation and Laceration Hazards,” June 14, 2012.