Johnathan Walker:Bookcase is recalled after child dies in tip-over incident

New study says furniture tipping over sends thousands of children to hospital each year

Dania Furniture is recalling a bookcase sold online and at its stores nationwide after an unanchored unit tipped over, killing a four-year-old child, the Boise, Idaho, company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday.

Dania Furniture said it had received the report of the child's death in August 2023. A law mandating safety measures designed to prevent such tragedies took effect the following month. 

Made in Italy, about 940 of the recalled bookcases were sold from November 2017 through February 2024 for about $370, the recall notice stated. 

The recalled product contains six storage cubbies and is made of brown wood with three sliding white doors. The bookcase is 35.5 inches wide, 16 inches deep and 73 inches tall. A label on the back has the SKU number LB2225/A.

Households with the product should stop using it unless it is anchored to a wall, and unanchored units should be put in an area that children can't reach, the notice advised. 

Owners of the bookcase should contact Dania Furniture to set up a free in-home installation of a tip-over restraint kit. The company is also offering to refund those who prefer to have the recalled bookcase picked up and returned.

The company can be reached at 844-722-6347 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, by emailing [email protected] or online here. 

Products manufactured before Sept. 1, 2023 are not covered by the Sturdy Act, which requires manufacturers take steps to ensure furniture such as dressers are less likely to tip onto children. 

Furthermore, parents and others are urged to anchor TV sets and other large furniture to the wall so kids can't pull them down. The law mandates that new furniture be sold with anchor kits.  

From January 2013 through July 2023, there were 137 reported child fatalities from furniture, TV and appliance tip-over incidents, which injure 17,800 people each year, according to the CPSC. Between 2000 and 2019, 451 children under 17 were killed by furniture and TVs tipping over and crushing them, the agency has noted.

Thursday's recall by Dania Furniture marks the fifth recall this year related to tip-over hazards. 

In:
• Product Recall
• Consumer Product Safety Commission

Kate Gibson

Kate Gibson is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch in New York, where she covers business and consumer finance.