Serious Falls Continue from Bumbo Baby Seats

Injuries occurring despite previous recall warning

By TDmonthly Staff
November 2011

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Due to the serious risk of injury to babies, CPSC and Bumbo International Trust of South Africa ("Bumbo International") are urging parents and caregivers to never place Bumbo Baby Seats on tables, countertops, chairs or other raised surfaces. Infants aged 3-10 months old have fallen out of the Bumbo seat and suffered skull fractures and other injuries.

CPSC and Bumbo International are aware of at least 45 incidents in which infants fell out of a Bumbo seat while it was being used on an elevated surface which occurred after an October 25, 2007 voluntary recall of the product. The recall required that new warnings be placed on the seat to deter elevated usage of the product. Since the recall, CPSC and Bumbo International have learned that 17 of those infants, ages 3-10 months, suffered skull fractures. These incidents and injuries involved both recalled Bumbo seats and Bumbo seats sold after the recall with the additional on-product warnings.

CPSC and Bumbo International are also aware of an additional 50 reports of infants falling or maneuvering out of Bumbo seats used on the floor and at unknown elevations. These incidents include two reports of skull fractures and one report of a concussion that occurred when babies fell out of Bumbo seats used on the floor. These injuries reportedly occurred when the infants struck their heads on hard flooring, or in one case, on a nearby toy.

The Bumbo seat is labeled and marketed to help infants sit in an upright position as soon as they can support their head. The product warnings state that the seat "may not prevent release of your baby in the event of vigorous movement." Infants as young as 3 months can fall or escape from the seat by arching backward, leaning forward or sideways or rocking.

At the time of the 2007 recall announcement, CPSC was aware of 28 falls from the product, three of which resulted in skull fractures to infants who fell or maneuvered out of the product used on an elevated surface. CPSC and Bumbo International are now aware of at least 46 falls from Bumbo seats used on elevated surfaces that occurred prior to the 2007 recall, resulting in 14 skull fractures, two concussions and one incident of a broken limb.

Approximately 3.85 million Bumbo seats have been sold in the United States since 2003.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is still interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are either directly related to this product alert or involve a different hazard with the same product. Please tell us about your experience with the product on www.saferproducts.gov

CPSC is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of the thousands of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $900 billion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals - contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

Under federal law, it is illegal to attempt to sell or resell any recalled product.

To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, go online to: www.saferproducts.gov, call CPSC's Hotline at (800) 638-2772 or teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270 for the hearing impaired. Consumers can obtain this news release and product safety information at www.cpsc.gov. To join a free e-mail subscription list, please go to https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx.