Bean bag chairs made with zippers and foam pellets have killed children. What happens is that children unzip them, crawl inside, and inhale or ingest the foam pellets. This causes death by suffocation. In some cases, the child has unzipped the chair, pulled out the foam pellets, and then ingested or inhaled some of them while playing. The pellets can clog the mouth and nose.
Because of this risk, since 1996, these products have been manufactured with zippers that young children can’t open, in accordance with the voluntary standard for bean bag chairs established by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
The voluntary standard for bean bag chairs requires that bean bag chairs intended to be refilled must have a locking zipper that opens only with a special tool. If not intended to be refilled, these products must have a permanently disabled zipper or no zipper. In addition, the requirements include permanent warning labels for bean bag chairs. The label wording differs depending on whether they can be refilled. Durability testing is intended to ensure that materials that could tear easily and allow pellets to escape and be inhaled are not used in manufacturing bean bag chairs.
Some stores are still selling bean bag chairs with zippers that open.
Almost 20 years after the establishment of the CPSC standard, some stores are still selling these products with zippers that can be opened by a child.
In August of 2014, Ace Bayou Corporation issued a recall of bean bag chairs after 2 children crawled inside and died. They died after suffocating from lack of air and inhaling foam beads. They were found dead inside.
The retailers that sold these obviously dangerous products included the following:
- Amazon
- Bon-Ton
- Meijer
- Pamida
- School Specialty
- Wayfair
- Walmart.
You can read more here: “Bean Bag Recall: Wrongful Death of 2 Children“.
In May of 2013, Powell Company recalled “Anywhere Lounger Bean Bag Chairs” for the same reason. These products were sold at furniture stores nationwide including W.S. Badcock, Value City Furniture, and Nebraska Furniture Mart from June 2012 to February 2013.
Our message to manufacturers and retailers is make sure you only sell these products without zippers or with zippers that can’t open. Parents, you can click here now to contact our child safety lawyers for a free consultation about a wrongful death lawsuit against a corporate wrongdoer. There is no obligation, and we are not paid unless we win your case. If your child has been killed by a bean bag chair or another product, you need to talk to an attorney. Our attorneys are also parents.
