For children, the simplest pleasures come from their toys. However, playtime can turn dangerous in a split second if a product defect results in serious injuries.
History tells a story of certain toys once flying off toy shelves, only to lead to life-changing consequences for their young users.
Bounce Houses
The inflatable dwellings can still be found at birthday parties and other occasions. However, the Consumer Product Safety Commission statistics claim injuries are in the tens of thousands due to improper staking. One particular incident resulted in five children dying due to sudden wind gusts that untethered the structure.
Hoverboards
The Back to the Future movie trilogy introduced the viewing audience to hoverboards. Fiction became fact in 2015, an ironic time for any BTTF fan. Hoverboards were available for purchase. Soon after, numerous accounts of these scooters exploding during use resulted in bans that saw retailers removing them from store shelves. Stronger regulations improved the safety of the transports. However, a 2021 recall of 237,000 Razor hoverboards resulted from defective battery packs presenting fire risks.
Fidget Spinners
While seemingly harmless, fidget spinners soon gained the attention of watchdog groups and their safety reports. Of specific concern were children removing the metal bearings out of the device and swallowing them. Target also removed them from shelves due to the significantly high lead levels.
Considering their audience, toy manufacturers should attend to every detail to ensure that their products have the highest standards of safety. Falling short carries catastrophic consequences and has resulted in numerous injuries and deaths.
The list of suspect toys continues to grow, forcing parents to do their homework. A long-awaited holiday or birthday gift should bring joy, not tragedy, to a child.
