Bassinet Recall
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has ordered retailers to stop selling bedside sleeper bassinets that have been linked to two infant deaths, according to the Washington Post. The “close-sleeper/bedside sleeper” bassinets were made by Simplicity Inc. of Reading, Penn. The agency’s safety alert was prompted by the death of a 6-month-old Kansas girl, who died from strangulation Aug. 21 after getting caught in the product’s metal bars, the newspaper said.
Some 900,000 of the 3-in-1 and 4-in-1 convertible bassinets may be in use today. Their metal bars are spaced farther apart than 2 3/8 inches, which is the maximum allowed by federal law, and this poses a great hazard. CPSC is issuing this safety alert because SFCA Inc., the company which purchased all of Simplicity Inc.’s assets at public auction in April 2008, has refused to cooperate with the government and recall the products! SFCA maintains that it is not responsible for products previously manufactured by Simplicity Inc. This warning does not cover bassinets produced in recent months that have fabric permanently attached over the lower bar.
Most stores have stopped selling them, but please pass this warning to every parent, day care center or consignment shop you know. It is a huge shame that we are only hearing about this a year after the first baby died. Perhaps another baby wouldn’t have died if this information became public.
For more information check out the Consumer Product Safety Commission web site here.
bassinets, bedside sleeper, close sleeper, convertible bassinets, recalls, baby gear recalls, baby gear, infants
August 30th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
I worry, too, about bassinets that may have been sold at rummage sales or consignment shops. Those buyers may not know about the recall. Thanks for posting!