As any regular reader of this blog likely knows, most product recalls are issued before any injuries are actually inflicted. The idea behind recalls is that they will get the dangerous or defective product out of the hands of consumers before anyone is hurt. While this is often how things unfold, there are of course times that individuals sustain an injury as the result of using certain products.

Unfortunately the product involved in a recent recall caused harm to several children. The dangerous products are Kolcraft strollers. Included in the recall are the lines known as Kolcraft Contours Options three- and four-wheeled strollers. The fingertips of at least three children have been amputated after being caught in a stroller hinge. Other people, adults, have reported smashed fingers in the same part of the stroller.

In total, an estimated 36,000 of the strollers are included in the recall. They were sold in North America over more than six years. Rather than return the product, owners of the strollers are being encouraged to contact the company for a repair kit.

It is possible that civil lawsuits will be filed by the parents of the children who lost the tips of their fingers. Products liability lawsuits are designed, in part, to hold the makers and distributors of dangerous products responsible for any pain the products may inflict. While money will not undo that harm, it may make the futures of the children easier. All would likely agree that this would be a good outcome.

Source: CNN, "Finger amputations caused by children's stroller prompts recall," Todd Sperry, June 15, 2012