Unfortunately, furniture accidents involving a unit tipping over and injuring people are somewhat common. And some of these accidents can be fatal. Buyers should install tip restraints to prevent the furniture from tipping over. That’s especially true if they have young children around the house. Furniture that poses a tip-over risk is routinely recalled. And that’s what Magnussen Home recently did with the Nova Series 5-Drawer Chests. The recall follows a tip-over incident that involved a child who sustained minor bruising.
The Magnussen Home furniture recall
The company issued a voluntary recall in late October when it posted the announcement on the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) website. The Magnussen Home furniture recall announcement is also available on Canada’s recall authority. The furniture company sold the chest in the country as well.
Magnussen Home recalled 13,200 pieces of furniture sold nationwide in the US and 2,520 units sold in Canada.
The Nova Series 5-Drawer Chest (Model B1428-10) in the Magnussen Home recall is brown. The wooded chest has a walnut veneer and measures 54 x 40 x 18 inches. Magnussen Home suppliers in Vietnam manufactured the furniture piece between August 2009 and August 2015. Here’s where you’ll find the label to see if your unit is part of the Magnussen Home recall:
A label located on the back of each unit in the top left-hand corner contains the month and year of manufacture as well as the model number. […] The date codes are printed in MMYY (month and year) format, and recalled units have date codes between AG09 and AG15, representing August 2009 and August 2015.
Finally, Magnussen Home notes that it has received only one incident report to date, resulting in a minor bruise to a child. The Canadian recall authority says it had not registered any incidents as of September 21st.
What you should do
Per the CPSC announcement, customers should stop using the Magnussen Home Nova series chest from the recall. They should contact the company for a refund. The amount refunded will be pro-rated based on the age of the chest. The furniture item sold for around $600 in stores.
Even if you plan on taking advantage of the recall and don’t intend to use the Magnussen Home chest, you should still consider anchoring the unit to a wall. If you have already secured the Nova series chest, you can still use it.
The Canadian recall announcement provides more guidance than the CPSC recall note, including the possibility of self-repairing the defect. The press release notes that the Magnussen Home furniture piece in the recall does not comply “with the performance requirements of the voluntary industry standard ASTM F2057-19.”
As a result, Magnussen Home will provide packaging and prepaid shipping labels for returns. But the company will also “send consumers a free tip restraint for self-installation upon request.”
This indicates that the dangerous furniture will be much safer once you anchor it to a wall.
Make sure you check the Magnussen Home recall announcement in full at the CPSC (this link) and the Canadian recall authority (this link) for the rest of the details.
