During the day the Puget Sound can still be dark with all of the cloud cover. To get some natural light into the house most people pull up their blinds all the way. This leaves the cord hanging down. Generally, blind cords are split into two and connected at the bottom to keep them from tying or tangling and also to assure that the blinds go down evenly.

When a child plays with the cords, they can pull, the blind’s weight goes down, the cord slides under the chin of the child and suddenly the child is struggling for breath, not strong enough to lift the blinds or remove the cord.

It can be a parent’s worst nightmare, but what happened in 2009 threw a Tacoma mom into a panic and prompted the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Smith and Noble (a manufacturer and distributor of window blinds based in California) to recall 1.3 million Roman shades and roller shades nationwide.

Blind Recall

Grace Meacham of Tacoma, described the May 2009 incident when her 5 year-old son, Jake, had been playing near the shades cords. “I was looking the other way, and he put it around his neck, and it caught behind his ears.” She said, “He stepped off the ledge, or fell off. He was dangling and couldn’t speak.”

Luckily Jake was able to get untangled and survived to become your typical 6-year-old boy, but he is just one of the thousands of young victims that has prompted millions of blinds and shades to be recalled for posing a strangulation hazard over the past several years.

The CPSC and Smith and Noble in this specific case is recalling 1,160,000 Roman shades and 115,000 roller shades. The CPSC describes on their website:

• Roman Shades: Strangulations can occur when a child places his/her neck between the exposed inner cord and the fabric on the backside of the shade or when a child pulls the cord out and wraps it around his/her neck.
• Roller Shades: Strangulation can occur if the shade’s continuous loop cord is not attached to the wall with the tension device provided and a child’s neck becomes entangled in the free-standing loop.

The Smith and Noble blinds were sold on the company’s website and through its catalog between 1998 through April 2010.

If you have these blinds and have children, often have visiting grandchildren, or have friends with small children who frequently visit you are urged to call for a free repair kit, call 800-506-4636.

Defective Product Lawyers

In June of this year the CPSC warned all window blind and shade manufacturers that their products are responsible for one child strangulation incident each month. The agency warned that the industry must seek safer methods or they will face new regulations.

In reaction to this, Bernie Paul, who owns Horizon Blinds of Tacoma, says companies have developed new technologies specifically to avoid risk. “I often recommend systems that have a cordless built in, so there won’t be any issues,” he told a reporter.

New technology is a step in the right direction, but many times companies aren’t prompted to change their technology without a financial reminder that they cannot create a product that could potentially bring harm to people, especially children, without serious monetary consequences.

Defective product litigation is many consumer’s only recourse to changing corporate policies in the safety of their goods. Corporations naturally go towards the cheapest mode of production and design to achieve the highest profitability. It is the consumer’s right to seek monetary accountability for this behavior.

If you or a loved one have been suffered serious personal injuries or wrongful death due to the defective design of any kind of blind or window shade system call Phillips Webster for a free consultation as to how you can get the compensation you deserve.

Learn More About:

• Manufacturer Defect Lawsuits and Liability
• Recall
• Defective Design