This is just ridiculous
Dear baby furniture/gear/toy manufacturers:
When I spend half my paycheck on your products that I “need” for my baby my very base expectation is that it won’t seriously injure or possibly kill my baby. I realize that there is always an element of user caution that must be used with everything and anything regarding my child and I take that into account. But crib mattresses that collapse? Strollers that pose a strangulation hazard? High chairs that lacerate curious little fingers? Come on now, this is not acceptable. It’s getting to a point where I am pretty much guaranteed that I will own something that will be recalled – which means I will have been using something that is dangerous to my child. We parents do the best that we can to make our homes safe, to only use proper equipment and use them as intended. So what are we supposed to do when that “safe” equipment has absolutely no guarantee of actually being safe? It disturbs me that you don’t seem to know or care that your products are unsafe until several children – your customers – get hurt.
Enough with the recalls.
Sincerely,
Irritated and Concerned Mother
I have actually written letters to companies following recalls, as I have now owned approximately a dozen items that have been recalled. It’s so very wrong that we have to worry about just how safe the products are that we purchase. Just wrong.
Most of these items are recalled because they are being used irresponsibly, not because the product itself is flawes.
That is true for many of them. Like for instance the Bumbo seat recall, which was solely to put warning stickers on the bottom because people were using them on tables and couches. But there are plenty that aren’t, recalls stemming from serious flaws, like crib mattresses collapsing. That is NOT acceptable, period.
AMEN!! This country needs to step it up!
amen!! the crib i bought for my first son was recalled the day after i bought the same crib for my second son. the bolts that hold the front to the sides/end of the crib come loose leaving a gap for little fingers, hands, heads to get caught in. nice.
I don’t know what item you are referring to, but they just recalled two types of strollers because a baby can slide in between or something if it’s not correctly strapped. But anything can freakin’ happen if it’s not done correctly and they don’t have to recall every frikkin’ thing because people are not able to do anything correctly anymore. It’s really becoming ridiculous. And sorry, but the bumbo and using/not using on the table is a no brainer. No need for sticker if you ask me. And I remember last year or a year before there was a recall of the excersaucers for teh very same reason to put stickers on to warn the parents not to fold them with the child in it, because some frikkin parents did and their baby died. Or the warning on a hair straightener taht tells me not to use it while im sleeping. It’s really becoming ridiculous.
Oh I agree…. those warning stickers are just beyond ridiculous! But people will sue for anything nowadays… ugh. (They folded them with the child IN it? WTF?!)
yes, they did. There were talks about recalling all the babies jammies and clothing becuase it says inflammable and they were worried that moron parents will lettheir kids play in open fire because they will think their clothes don’t burn (and im sure some parents will!)
I do agree that all the warnings have gotten out of hand. It reminds me of that character in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, who went insane after reading the instructions on a box of toothpicks. Doesn’t sound too far off to me! There have always been parodies of warning labels — like “dying of lung cancer can seriously damage your health” for cigarette packets — but these days it’s nearly real.
The one recall that gave us a problem was medication being recalled because people were having serious issues when taking 8x the recommended dose. Both types of recall — user error and serious manufacturing defaults — are irritating/concerning in their own ways.
My crib was one of the ones recalled because of the drop side malfunctioning, and I was just flabbergasted when the recommendation was to “cease use immediately”. Um, where else is my 2 year old supposed to sleep? He won’t sleep in a bed, climbs out of the pack and play. You better be prepared to overnight me a solution if you’re going to tell me not to use my crib. But the hotline was busy every time I called! I ended up buying some stuff at the hardware store and reinforcing the damn thing myself. I understand stuff breaks, but I expect a PROPORTIONAL response. If I have to stop using it because it could harm my kid, you better be concerned enough to go to great lengths to correct the problem FAST.
Yeah, a crib is one of those necessities that most people use daily and don’t really have another option for! What a mess.
While I think this recent stroller recall is ridiculous, the crib one irritated me. My crib was recalled 4 different times. The first time because the assembly instructions told parents to put the drop side on upside down (but I was smart and realized that the decorated part was supposed to go on top). Then because the hardware broke easily, and I got the repair kit instead of replacement hardware. The 3rd time was because the replacement hardware ALSO was defective (glad I didn’t get it!). And fourth because the mattress supports could break, though mine never did through 2 babies. That’s when I found out I could take it back to the store for full refund, and Patrick was done with it anyway, so I got bunkbeds for my kids with the money. lol But I agree, it was all just shoddy manufacturing. That’s why the company that made mine is no longer in business I guess.
Ever watch the documentary called “Babies?” Interesting commentary (without anything said) on how little of these products we (Western mothers)actually need, anyway.
We had 5 gates that were recalled because of a latch issue. Babies could unlatch and fall thru! Gee – thanks!