The day after Thanksgiving officially kicks of the Christmas shopping season, as most people are well aware. This is supposedly the first day the retailers’ books go from red to black in terms of profit and losses, hence the name Black Friday. Following Black Friday, there is a Small Business Saturday, in which shoppers are encouraged to frequent small businesses when buying gifts, and there is, of course, Cyber Monday for internet sales of holiday gifts. In other words, there will no shortage of ways to get discounts, and there will be a lot of crazed shoppers camped outside of their favorite stores to get the best deals of the season.
According to a recent news article from the Morrow County Sentinel, a child safety organization is stressing the use of holiday toy guidelines to prevent child injuries. On of the first things they stress is to make sure you purchase a toy that is appropriate for the child’s age. This has a lot to do with the fear of a child choking. Children under the age of three are most susceptible to choking on a small toy part. Inspectors will typically use choke tester, which consists of a small tube that is approximately the same size as the airway of a child under the age of three. If any part of the toy can fit in the tube, you should not give it to your young child. As the article notes, these choke testers are available to purchase on the Internet and at brick-and-mortar stores that sell baby items.
While this mainly pertains to toys with removable parts, a poorly designed toy may have parts that come loose, even if they are not supposed to. If a defectively designed product has injured your child, you should contact a Boston products liability attorney as soon as possible to see if you have a valid claim.
Another piece of advice on the holiday children’s toy buying guide is to avoid any toys that have sharp edges or points for children less than eight years of age. For example, a metal airplane toy that is popular for kids may have sharp points on the wings that can injure a child.
You should also avoid any electrical toys with elements that can become heated by an electrical outlet or batteries for children under the age of eight. These toys can result in serious burn injury. It is also important to avoid toys that make loud noises for infants and young children. Sometimes these loud noises can actually do permanent damage to your child’s eardrums. The guideline also recommends that you not give your child any toys with a string or cord more than seven inches long, because that can present a major strangulation hazard.
Call the Boston Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential appointment — (617) 777-7777.
Additional Resources:
Safe Kids Worldwide stresses using holiday toy guidelines, November 20, 2015, Morrow Country Sentinel
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