Magnussen Home Recalls Nova Series 5-Drawer Dressers Due to Tip-Over Risk
The chests don’t comply with the industry’s voluntary safety standard and the company has received a report of the product tipping over, hurting a child
Magnussen Home Furnishings recalled about 15,720 Nova Series five-drawer wooden chests sold in the U.S. and Canada because the products are unstable, posing a tip-over and entrapment hazard that can lead to serious injury or death, according to an announcement this week from the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The CPSC alert states that the products don’t comply with the industry’s voluntary stability standard, and the company has received a report of a chest tipping over and bruising a child.
Why Dresser Stability Matters
Every 60 minutes, on average, a child is sent to an emergency room following a furniture tip-over incident, and there were at least 218 reported child fatalities involving a chest, bureau, or dresser between 2000 and 2019, according to the CPSC.
Federal legislation called the Stop Tip-Overs of Unstable, Risky Dressers on Youth (STURDY) Act could address this danger. The bill, which is backed by CR and other consumer safety advocates, would require the CPSC to create a new mandatory rule that includes more stringent stability requirements for dressers, as opposed to the voluntary stability standard that exists. STURDY was recently passed in the House with bipartisan support, but it is awaiting a vote in the Senate.
Until then, Gabe Knight, a policy analyst at CR, cautions that “the current voluntary standard is too weak to protect children from the very real risk of injury and death that can result from tip-overs.” She adds that the industry’s voluntary standard in place now also does not account for much of what happens in the real world when people interact with their dressers, such as when multiple drawers are opened at once or when a child pulls on a drawer or attempts to climb on a dresser. “The Senate needs to pass the STURDY Act right away to make dressers safer for all consumers.”
Several furniture sellers already support the law—including Amazon, Room & Board, and Williams-Sonoma, which owns Pottery Barn and West Elm.
Recall Details
Products recalled: About 13,200 Nova Series 5-Drawer Chests, Model B1428-10, sold in the U.S., and about 2,520 sold in Canada. The product is made of wood with a brown walnut veneer and measures 54 inches tall, 40 inches wide, and 18 inches deep. A label located on the back of each chest in the top left-hand corner lists the month and year of manufacture as well as the model number. Recalled units have date codes between AG09 and AG15, representing August 2009 and August 2015.
Sold at: Furniture stores nationwide from August 2009 through August 2015 for about $600.
The problem: The dressers don’t comply with the industry’s voluntary stability standard and pose a serious tip-over danger. Magnussen Home has received one report of a chest tipping over and bruising a child.
The fix: Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled dresser and keep children away from it. Then contact Magnussen Home for a refund, which will be prorated based on the age of the product.
How to contact the manufacturer: Call Magnussen Home at 833-748-0210, email at recall@magnussen.com, or visit the company’s recall page.
To report a dangerous product or product-related injury, go to SaferProducts.gov.
