Children's Products and Car Seats

Any product designed and manufactured for children should be made with great care to ensure it is safe. Unfortunately, child safety too often takes a back seat to corporate profits.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report more than 9 million children are injured and 12,000 die every year as a result of unintentional accidents. Of those injuries, some 250,000 or more are caused by defective toys. An estimated 7 million involving children under the age of 8 are injured in motor vehicle accidents. Approximately 75,000 children under 5 are injured by defective nursery products, such as cribs, bassinets, swings, strollers and high chairs.

At The Ansara Law Firm, our Fort Lauderdale product liability attorneys know these incidents can have devastating consequences to children and their families. Makers and distributors of these products need to be held accountable.

Our experience in these cases has taught us there is a wide range of goods that can pose the risk of harm to children. Some of the common types of defects linked to children’s products have included:

• Sharp edges of toys;
• Products that contain toxic materials;
• Products with small parts that could be easily swallowed;
• Products that pose risk of a fall;
• Strings or ropes that might cause strangulation;
• Flammable or dangerous apparel or clothing;
• Faulty car seats/ strollers;
• Dangerous baby food;
• Toys or products with easily accessible batteries or magnets;
• Dangerous bedding/ defective cribs;
• Products that use heat, electricity or other mechanical features that could cause burns or shock;
• Dangerous pool toys/ products;
• Defective or dangerous child medications;
• Car seats that are defectively designed or manufactured.

Every year, millions of children’s products are recalled either voluntarily by manufacturers or forcibly by federal regulators. The recall of a product can help to establish a product defect and the causal connection between that and the injury. However, plaintiffs can file claims for child product injuries with the assistance of our Fort Lauderdale lawyers even if there has been no recall.

Like any other product liability claims, allegations of unsafe or defective child products can be made against a number of defendants, including:

• Manufacturers
• Suppliers
• Distributors
• Retailers

A claim for product liability is intended to compensate children and/or their families for serious injuries, illnesses or deaths caused by products that were unreasonably dangerous, either inherently by their very design or due to some manufacturing flaw or unsafe handling. In some cases, claims can be based on an inadequate warning of the risks. Our experienced team of injury attorneys can help you determine the best course of action for your circumstances.

One of the most vulnerable group of children in the U.S. are those under the age of 5. The CPSC reports that annually, there are nearly 75,000 young children treated in hospital emergency departments for injuries associated with nursery products.

Accounting for 66 percent of these injuries were:

• Cribs/ mattresses
• Infant carriers
• Strollers/ carriages
• High chairs

Falls were the top cause of injuries caused by children's products, with injuries to the head and face occurring most frequently. Other possible dangers included entrapment, suffocation, strangulation, amputation, choking, abrasions and internal injuries.

The agency reported an average of 105 under-5 child deaths every year attributed to nursery products. In these cases, 86 percent of fatalities were attributed to:

• Cribs/ mattresses
• Bassinets/ cradles
• Playpens/ play yards
• Infant carriers
• Baby baths/ bath seats/ bathinettes

In many cases, the deaths involved some type of asphyxiation. Certain environmental hazards elevated the risk, including things like easy access to cords from window covers, ill-fitting mattresses and cushions in play yards or improvised covers on play yards.

Injuries suffered in motor vehicle crashes are the No. 1 cause of death among children in the U.S. It’s been proven in study after study that children using the appropriate restraints for their size and age have a substantially lower risk of suffering serious or fatal injuries.

Children often suffer worse injuries than adults in car accidents, as our Fort Lauderdale attorneys are aware, and head trauma in particular may not fully manifest until many years later.

Defective car seats increase the risk of child injury. Some examples of car seat defects include:

• Defective buckles. A buckle that is faulty or poorly designed could come undone upon impact or it might come unfastened too easily, which could allow the child the opportunity to unfasten it.
• Defective carry handles. Many car seats allow the unit to detach from the base so caregivers can use it as a carrier. In some cases, handles may release without warning, which could cause the infant to fall out.
• Faulty chest clips. These are the clips that are positioned around the child’s chest and shoulders. If they break or are unfastened by the child, they can cause serious injuries – even if there isn’t an accident.
• Defective base. If a base is not properly designed and manufactured, the detachable car seat won’t re-latch properly or could cause it become unlatched upon impact in a crash. This could result in a child being thrown from the vehicle.
• Not enough padding. If the cushioning in a car seat is not sufficient, a child may suffer an increased risk of head injuries in a car accident.

If your child has suffered an injury or wrongful death due to a faulty car seat or defective child product, we will help you fight for compensation.

Contact Fort Lauderdale Attorney Richard Ansara at The Ansara Law Firm by calling (954) 761-3641.