December 22, 2016 — The Swedish furniture company IKEA will pay a $50 million settlement to the families of three boys who died when they were trapped under a now-recalled dresser.
The families of Curren Collas, Camden Ellis, and Theodore “Ted” McGee will evenly split the settlement, according to a statement by a law firm representing the families.
Ikea will also donate $100,000 to Shane’s Foundation, a non-profit that focuses on preventing furniture tip-overs, plus $50,000 to children’s hospitals in each of the boys’ home states.
Ikea recalled 29 million dressers and chests in June 2016, four months after a 22 month-old boy from Minnesota died under a 6-drawer MALM dresser. It was the seventh death reported since 1989. Another 36 children have been injured in tip-over accidents.
After two boys died in 2014, Ikea started a “Secure It!” public awareness campaign and offered free wall-anchoring kits. Only 300,000 kits were distributed in the U.S., leaving tens of millions of dangerous dressers in consumers’ homes.
The furniture industry in the U.S. has adopted voluntary safety standards that require dressers to withstand the weight of a 50-pound child pulling out the dresser and climbing up the stairs. As part of the lawsuit settlement, Ikea has agreed to meet these standards in future products they sell.
Experts recommend anchoring furniture to the wall to prevent tip-overs. One child dies every two weeks, and more than 25,000 are injured this way every year, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
Do I have an IKEA Dresser Tip-Over Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting IKEA dresser induced injury cases in all 50 states. If your child was injured by a tip-over accident, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Product Liability Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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