Ikea said it has relaunched a recall of 29 million chests and dressers
- The Death of a toddler in California in May raised questions about whether Ikea effectively spread the word about the recall
- The recall for chest and dressers that can easily tip over if not properly anchored to a wall was first announced in June 2016
- Eight children under three have been killed when an Ikea dresser fell on them
- The latest death was two-year-old Jozef Dudek of Buena Park, California
Ikea has relaunched the recall of 29 million chests and dressers after the death of an eighth child in California.
Jozef Dudek, 2-year-old from California, died May 2017 when a three-drawer IKEA MALM Dresser fell on him. Image Credit: PRNewsfoto/Feldman Shepherd
On Tuesday, CEO Lars Petersson said that Ikea now wants to increase awareness of the recall campaign for several types of chest and dressers that can easily tip over if not properly anchored to a wall.
The death of a California toddler, who was reportedly found trapped underneath an Ikea Malm dresser in May, has raised questions about whether Ikea has effectively spread the word about the recall, which was announced back in June 2016.
The retailer and the federal safety regulators are once again asking customers to take immediate action to secure the dressers, or to return them.
The recall, which applies only to customers in the US and Canada, is for children’s chests and drawers which are taller than 23.5 inches and adult chests and dressers taller than 29.5 inches.
The recall includes 8 million Malm chest and dressers that were sold during the period 2002 through June 2016.
Petersson noted that more than 1 million dressers of have been returned for a refund or have been secured to walls with Ikea’s help since 2015, when the company first offered customers free wall-mounting kits.
Ikea said that the recalled products are sold with instructions that they had to be attached to walls. Petersson emphasized the recalled units are safe when this is done.
Peterson also said that Ikea has stopped selling products that do not adhere to US voluntary standards.
Acting CPSC chairman Ann Marie Buerkle mentioned that people who own the furniture can take care of any potential hazards by contacting Ikea whereby they will receive a free wall-mounting kit. The company is also offering to send crews to attach them in the home.
Ikea is also offering full refunds for anyone who no longer wants the furniture. Customers may bring them to a store, or Ikea will pick them up.
Buerkle said that Ikea has ‘worked hard to make this an effective recall.’
She noted that it presents customers with an array of options ‘and is as least burdensome to the consumer as it could be.’