Authorities at the U.S. Consumer Safety Commission (CPSC) filed an administrative complaint Wednesday against a private company based in Pennsylvania, whose infant recliners are associated with five infant deaths.
The complaint highlighted the risks associated with two infant recliner models - Nap Nanny Generation One and Two and Chill, manufactured by the company "Baby Matters LLC." These products are designed for sleeping, resting and playing for babies.
The agency has received reports of four infants dying in Nap Nanny Generation Two recliners and one in the Chill infant recliner. In addition to this, the commission has received 70 complaints of small children nearly falling out of the recliner.
Citing the risks, the commission had earlier conducted some meetings with the company, asking for voluntary recall of its products associated with the tragic incidents. However, the company was not ready for a voluntary recall.
The agency sued the company Wednesday after the members of the CPSC unanimously approved the decision to file the complaint, recently. According to the authorities, the recliners have defects in design, warnings and instructions and cannot ensure safety of infants.
In the complaint notice, they demanded for the company to inform consumers about the defects and provide a full refund.
"We want parents to understand that the government is filing the lawsuit because we believe the product to be a substantial hazard and we want parents to know that we allege that there have been five deaths associated with the products," Commission spokesman Scott Wolfson told Philly.com.
However, the company is not ready to take full responsibility for the tragic incidents associated with the product.
"The loss of an infant is an unthinkable tragedy, and I am truly heartbroken for the families who have lost a child," Leslie Gudel, Comcast SportsNet reporter and owner of the company, said in a statement. "But the fact that infants have died while using the Nap Nanny improperly, such as when used in a crib where the child could suffocate on a crib bumper or a blanket, does not mean our product caused the child's death or is hazardous."
