Personal Injury Law

Target Recalls Trunk that Crippled Toddler

By Michael

A federal recall was recently announced for storage trunks sold nationwide by retail store Target since they pose a possible strangulation risk. The defective product recall comes about a year from after two children were injured in relation to the trunks.

One child suffered crippling brain damage in connection to the trunk model, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission-sanctioned recall involves about 350,000 woven trunks used for storage. The commission said the store chain has cooperated fully with the recall.

The move comes about two months after a family filed an injury lawsuit against the company after their child was injured by the trunks, according to the Star Tribune.

Target released a statement on May 20 saying that the trunks were never intended for use by small children, or even to be used to store toys. The company urged anyone who purchased the trunks and have small children living in their home to return the trunks to local stores and receive a full refund for doing so.

The issue that led to the recall is the trunk?s lid, which can drop suddenly when released, thus ?posing a strangulation hazard to small children opening or reaching into the trunks,? according to a statement released by the CPSC.

In July 2009, Camryn Surman, who was 18-months-old at the time, suffered brain damage when the trunk?s lid came down on the back of her neck and pinned her throat against the rim. The family then filed an injury lawsuit against Target in March 2010, requesting damages for medical expenses, as well as pain and suffering that Carmryn experienced.

According to the injury lawsuit, Target ?specifically endorsed the storage of children?s toys as one of the intended uses? of the trunks. The suit further claimed that if purchased online, the trunk comes with no warnings or notices about proper use and that it lacked a safety mechanism.

Target filed documents in court in April challenging the Surman family?s lawsuit, and any claims that the company was negligent or that the trunk was defective.

The federal recall of the trunk includes 14 models all made from woven rattan, abaca or banana leaf, according to the Star Register. The trunks were sold between February 2009 and April 2010, were sold for between $50 and $130 and were made in China and the Philippines.

Customers were advised to immediately stop using the trunks and return them to Target for a full refund, or for a different product.

Full post as published by The Injury Blog on May 25, 2010 (boomark / email).