IKEA has recently been forced to issue customers with a cautionary about their Malm budget furniture range, after a child was crushed to death when a chest of drawers fell on him.
This is not the first time the Swedish brand has issued such warnings in relation to this very range. The advice was first given in July last year after two children were killed in separate cases.
In the third and most recent case, a 22-month old tipped a wooden chest of drawers onto himself while in his room. He’s Mom, who thought he was asleep in his bed, found him lying under the chest.
Apparently the self-assembly chest was not fixed to the wall and this is why IKEA has issued another safety warning to parents.
An Ikea spokesperson issued the warning advising:
“We wish to emphasise that the best way to prevent tip-over of chests of drawers is to attach products to the wall with the included restraints and hardware per the assembly instructions. Ikea has included restraints with our chest of drawers for decades, and wall attachment is an integral part of the assembly instructions.”
On average, one child dies every two weeks when a piece of furniture, a television or appliance falls on to him or her. By anchoring large furniture, televisions and appliances these tragedies can be prevented.
What are “restraints” as Ikea refers to in it’s statement?
Restraints are basically anchors which are anti-tipping devices. These anti-tipping devices can be installed relatively easily and are inexpensive. As Ikea mentions, these are usually included with the purchase of a chest of drawers, but you could easily find them at any home improvement retailer.
If you are renting your home or unable to anchor against the wall for any reason, you can still anchor your large appliances to a low and sturdy base as far back as possible.
Here’s an instructional video as suggested by the U.S Consumer Product Safety commission.
via YouTube