Facts

November 2, 2022, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted to approve a federal safety standard for operating cords on custom window coverings.  The Commission also approved a new federal safety rule that added non-compliant window covering cords to CPSC’s substantial product hazard list.There are so many various products on the market, some of which claim to be safer than others. Safety devices and many retrofits attached to cords have failed to prevent strangulation in hundreds of injuries and death cases in the USA. Exposed loose inner cords and even short cords (which can be pulled on to create a dangerous long length) have been involved in several accidents of the most diligent parents. Kids typically use cords in dramatic play and will use whatever they can to reach them. Cordless window coverings create a safe sleep and play environment for kids, can be cost-effective and they look fabulous.

It is so important to report an unsafe product.

Information taken from the accident can help manufacturers, government officials and safety advocates by knowing key details on how to work together in creating safer products. Your information is vital in saving future children.

Click here to report an unsafe product.

More than 600 young children are treated in U.S. emergency departments (EDs) each year for injuries related to window blinds, according to a January 2018 Pediatrics study that found that window blind cords continue to pose serious strangulation risk to young children.

Researchers from the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital are calling for a new mandatory safety standard to prevent these injuries, which can be fatal.

The team studied incident reports from two U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) databases and reported its findings in the article “Pediatric Injuries Related to Window Blinds, Shades, and Cords” (Onders B, et al. Pediatrics. Dec. 11, 2017, https://doi.org/10.1542/ peds.2017-2359).

Using data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, the authors estimated about 16,827 children under age 6 years were treated in an ED for a window blind injury from 1990-2015. Roughly 61.6% were boys, and the average age was 2.6 years. About 65.3% of the injuries occurred in the head region, and just under half of all those injured were struck by the blinds, according to the study.

While 93.4% were treated and released, there were 271 deaths, nearly all of which were associated with entanglement. The In-Depth Investigation database, which includes detailed reports on 231 blind cord entanglements, found that about 67% resulted in death.

For nearly two decades, Parents for Window Blind Safety, Consumer Federation of America, and Independent Safety Consulting, LLC have prioritized window blind safety through participation in the voluntary and mandatory standards processes in the United States and Canada. The organizations participated in the United States WCMA/ANSI voluntary standards process in 2010, 2012, 2017, and 2021; Health Canada’s 2013 standard update; and the United States CPSC mandatory standards process through petitioning the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in 2014 to ban unsafe accessible window covering cords.  In 2017, when advocates participated in the voluntary standard development process with CPSC and the window coverings industry, the Window Covering Manufacturers Association (WCMA) stated that hazards on custom cords would be addressed by initiating an additional safety standard within six months after the December 31, 2018 enforcement date. That deadline was not met.

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