Recall Issued for One Million Dressers Sold at K-Mart, Sears Due to Tip-Over and Entrapment Risks

Amid concerns furniture may tip over and cause serious injuries for young children, a recall has been issued for more than one million four-drawer dressers sold at Kmart and Sears.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a Belmont dresser recall on October 3, indicating that the furniture does not comply with industry standards intended to prevent tip-over incidents, and may pose a risk of severe injury or death for children.

The action comes as federal safety regulators continue to address design defects with many tall and heavy pieces of furniture sold in recent years, which have been linked to a shockingly large number of devastating injuries when not anchored to a wall.

An estimated one million dressers sold at Kmart and Sears are impacted by the recall, which were sold in white, black, light pine and brown oak colors, featuring plastic drawer glides sold in two sizes.

Officials indicate the dressers, which measure approximately 29 inches high by 27 inches wide by 15 inches deep or 32 inches high by 27 inches wide by 15 inches deep, are not in compliance with the U.S. voluntary industry standards set forth by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), and if not anchored to the wall could pose a tip-over risk to children.

The dressers were manufactured by Ridgewood Industries Inc., of Canada where they were distributed for sale throughout the United States to Kmart and Sears’s retail locations from April 2013 to September 2019, selling for about $40.

Customers are being asked to stop using the recalled dressers immediately and put them in a place inaccessible to children until they can be properly anchored to a wall. Consumers are being asked to contact Ridgewood Industries at 888-222-7460 or visit them online at ameriwood.com and navigate to their Support page for information on how to receive a free anchoring kit, including a wall anchor strap. Customers will be able to request a one-time free in home installation of the wall anchor strap.

Furniture Tip-Over Problems

Furniture tip-over risks are one of the most common dangers in every home across the nation, and reports have suggested that a child is sent to the emergency room every 24 minutes after suffering a suffocation or blunt force trauma from a tip-over injury.

Children are inherently more susceptible to tip-over accidents from climbing and reaching for items at the top of dressers, or television stands, whether it is for a remote, gaming equipment or toys.

With more than 430 deaths recorded by the CPSC over the last 13 years, the CPSC first launched its “Anchor It” campaign in 2015, which warns parents of the top hidden tip-over hazards in the home and how to take steps to prevent tip-over accidents from occurring.

In June 2016, IKEA recalled 35 million MALM dressers found to be in violation of industry standards that require furniture over specified heights to be anchored to walls to prevent tip-over hazards to consumers. Several deaths and dozens of injuries have been related directly to the MALM series dressers.