An Ikea furniture store dresser, known as the MALM chest, has caused the death of two children in the United States this past year. Both children were killed in tip-over incidents. Tip-over incidents occur when a piece of furniture or an appliance is knocked over or falls over and lands on somebody.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, tip-over incidents frequently injure children and in fact, roughly every 14 days a child dies as a result of one of these horrific accidents. Ikea has issued a warning across the United States that the chests and dressers that are sold at their store are not safe around children unless they are properly anchored to a wall.

The cause of tip-over accidents can be related to a defective product. Televisions, dressers, and other furniture and appliances should be designed to pass stability tests. Also, customers that purchase furniture should be properly warned of the dangers of their furniture falling over and injuring children. Customers should be given proper instructions how to mount the furniture to reduce chances of tip-over incidents.

As a parent, the easiest way to keep your children safe is to purchase an anchoring kit for your furniture and appliances. Televisions and television stands falling over are the cause of about 66% of tip-over incident injuries and most of the victims of these accidents are children.

Children are much more vulnerable than adults because they are smaller and more curious. Children are often injured when climbing on furniture and playing in the vicinity of appliances that can fall over.

If you or a loved one has been hurt by a defective product, call the personal injury lawyers at Dallas W. Hartman, P.C. today for a free case evaluation at 1-800-777-4081.

Source: Washington Post. "Ikea, a tipped-over dresser and a toddler's tragic death". 23 July 2015.