Reports of children’s fingertips being amputated by strollers has triggered a massive recall. Maclaren Strollers in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC, issued the voluntary recall today, warning consumers that they should stop using the recalled strollers immediately because the stroller’s hinge mechanism poses a fingertip amputation and laceration hazard to the child when the consumer is unfolding/opening the stroller.
To date, Maclaren has received 15 reports of children placing their fingers in the stroller’s hinge mechanism, resulting in 12 reports of fingertip amputation in the United States.
The recall includes about one million single and double Maclaren Strollers distributed …read more

Millions of window blinds are being recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) after reports of strangulation deaths in children. The blinds do not have inner-cord-stop devices to prevent the accessible inner cords from being pulled out. The recall includes about 15,400 horizontal blinds, 16,500 vertical blinds, and 800 cellular shades manufactured by Vertical Land Inc. of Panama City Beach, Fla.
The horizontal blinds pose a risk of strangulation if the inner cord is pulled out, a child can become entangled in the loop and become strangled. Vertical blinds create a risk of strangulation if a child’s neck becomes entangled …read more

Below are the child-related product recalls (as issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission – CPSC) for the dates of 5/19 – 5/25. Again, lead paint violations dominate the recalls, along with one strangulation hazard.
May 20 – Master Toys & Novelties Inc. Recalls Little Rider Toys
- Violation of Lead Paint Standard
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08272.html
May 20 – Douglas Co. Recalls Children’s Blankets
- Strangulation Hazard
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08275.html
May 22 -Disney Store Recalls Pirates of the Caribbean Sleeping Bags
- Violation of Lead Paint Standard
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08278.html
May 22 – Disney Store Recalls Tinker Bell Wands
- Violation of Lead Paint Standard
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08282.html
May 22 – Floppy Friends Horse Toys Recalled by …read more

Here is a recap of the child-related product recalls from the Consumer Product Safety Commission between 4/13/08 and 4/20/08. All things considered, it was a relatively light week for child product recalls. Interestingly, one of the two CPSC recalls was a voluntary recall by Walmart, independent of the manufacturer.
For more information on any of these recalls, follow the link below each description to view the full recall data from the CPSC.
April 16 – Santa’s Toy Corp. recalls Western Rider Push Toys
- Violation of Lead Paint Standard
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08249.html
April 18 – Wal-Mart Recalls Charm Key Chains
- Risk of lead exposure
- http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08250.html

Bob Hundemer, the nation’s only full time toy tester at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), and the man behind all my toy recall posts, has retired after twenty seven years.
From the Washington Post:
Hundemer decided that, at age 61, it was time to move on. He leaves behind an agency less than half the size it was when he started in 1980 and a testing facility in Gaithersburg that once was spacious but now is cramped and run down, infested with rodents and plagued by rotted window frames.
All of that is likely to change, however. This year, the …read more

For those of you looking for lists of recalled toys and child products before doing your holiday shopping, check out the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission website.
From CPSC.gov:
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from more than 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency’s jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $700 billion annually. The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard or can injure children. …read more