Illinois Guide to Dangerous Baby and Children’s Products

Baby and children's products are highly regulated, but sometimes dangerous items still make it to the consumer

A baby or child being injured by a dangerous product—particularly a product designed for children!—is a nightmare. But if the unthinkable happens, you might be interested in how you can be compensated for their injuries.

If a defective product has injured a baby or child in a way that requires medical treatment or has long-term effects on their life, you could be eligible to recover costs related to the injury. This is part of Illinois product liability law, but there are a few elements specific to products marketed for children.

Categories of Illinois product liability law for defective baby and children’s products

1. Defective design
   This is when the product’s design makes it inherently dangerous. For example, cribs that can entrap infants, toys with small parts that pose choking hazards, and strollers that can collapse unexpectedly.
2. Manufacturing defects
   A manufacturing defect occurs when a product was designed in a way that is safe, but an error or omission in the manufacturing process causes it to be defective and dangerous to the user. This could involve baby bottles that break easily or car seats with faulty buckles.
3. Failure to warn
   A product, itself, might be perfectly fine, but if the manufacturer fails to provide adequate warnings or instructions about potential dangers, they can be liable for failure to warn. This includes not warning about the risks of small detachable parts or the necessity of adult supervision when using certain toys.
4. Non-compliance with safety standards
   Cases where products do not meet established safety standards. This includes cribs that do not meet federal safety regulations or children’s clothing that is not flame-resistant.

Illinois child product safety laws

1. Illinois Product Liability Act
   Manufacturers, distributors, and retailers can be held strictly liable for injuries caused by defective products. This means plaintiffs do not need to prove negligence; they only need to show the product was defective and caused injury.
2. Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act
   This act protects consumers from deceptive business practices. This includes parents and guardians who purchase products for children and allows for lawsuits against companies that misrepresent the safety of their products.
3. Child product safety laws
   Illinois enforces several federal child product safety standards through its state regulations, ensuring products sold within the state comply with federal safety standards set by organizations such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

Legal principles for Illinois defective baby and children’s products

• Strict liability
  As mentioned, Illinois follows strict liability principles for product liability cases. This means that if a product is found to be defective and causes injury, the manufacturer or seller can be held liable regardless of whether they were negligent.
• Negligence
  In some cases, plaintiffs may also pursue a negligence claim, arguing that the manufacturer failed to exercise reasonable care in designing, manufacturing, or providing warnings about the product.
• Breach of warranty
  Plaintiffs may claim that the product breached express or implied warranties. Express warranties are specific promises made by the seller or manufacturer, while implied warranties guarantee that a product is fit for ordinary use.
• Damages
  Plaintiffs can seek compensatory damages for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other related costs. In some cases, punitive damages might also be awarded to punish particularly egregious conduct by the defendant and to serve as a deterrent to similar (potential) defendants.
• Statute of limitations
  In Illinois, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases, including those involving defective products, is generally two years from the date of injury. However, for minors, the statute of limitations may be extended until the minor turns 18.

Typical lawsuits for defective children’s and baby products

Here are some common examples of the types of product defects that lead to lawsuits:

Crib- and bed-related injuries

Drop-side cribs can detach and create a gap where infants can become entrapped and suffocate. There are also injuries reported for defective mattresses, where a mattress designed for a baby crib is too soft, which poses a suffocation risk. A crib mattress needs to be firm so the baby can’t “sink” into it and suffocate. In addition, crib mattresses should be free of harmful chemicals that could affect the baby’s health.

Injuries from toys

There are two primary categories of injuries that tend to be associated with toys.

• Choking hazards. This includes toys with small parts that detach easily, because these pose a risk to young children who are likely to put small items in their mouths.
  
  Here’s a tip from a mom: If an item can fit through a toilet paper roll, then it can choke your child. Never give a child younger than three (or one who puts things in their mouth) any small item without doing the toilet paper roll test first.
  
  Even toys that don’t have small parts—like stuffed animals—could have buttons, eyes, or other things that might detach accidentally and could go in your child’s mouth. It’s good to either avoid toys and stuffed items with sewed-on parts or check them periodically to make sure everything is secure.
  
• Toxic materials. There have been several recalls and lawsuits over the past decade or so about toys made with lead paint or other toxins that lead to poisoning or other health issues in children. New regulations about chemicals in plastics and metals are an attempt to solve this problem.

Car seat and stroller injuries

A car seat is crucial for protecting children in a crash. But there are many “moving parts” to a car seat, including its buckles, harnesses, and padding. If any of these parts fail or are defective, it could result in a child being injured. However, it’s very important to ensure that the adult is using the seat correctly, including proper installation in the vehicle and placement and buckling of the child. 

Strollers need to be trustworthy, but accidents happen occasionally. There have been lawsuits for strollers that collapse, have wheels that break, faulty brakes, or other issues that injure children.

High chairs and booster seat injuries

The primary issues for high chairs and booster seats involve stability and defective straps or buckles. These products have tipping hazards, so even if a child is properly seated and buckled, stability problems could cause injuries. Likewise, defective straps or buckles could cause a child to fall out of the seat and be injured.

Injuries from clothes and accessories

Illinois follows federal regulations regarding flammable clothing for children and safety rules related to strangulation hazards. The state adheres to the standards set by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) under the Flammable Fabrics Act (FFA) and other relevant guidelines. 

The Flammable Fabrics Act includes specific requirements for children's sleepwear. These regulations aim to reduce the risk of burn injuries by ensuring that children's sleepwear is made from fabrics that are less likely to catch fire and that, if ignited, will burn slowly. Clothing that is snug-fitting and, therefore, less likely to catch fire is subject to different, less stringent flammability requirements.

The CPSC also provides guidelines to address strangulation hazards, particularly for clothing with drawstrings, which are a known risk. Drawstrings on children's upper outerwear (like jackets and hoodies) should be designed to minimize the risk of strangulation. The CPSC recommends no drawstrings at the hood or neck area for sizes 2T to 12. Waist or bottom drawstrings should be limited in length and should not extend more than three inches when the garment is expanded to its fullest width.

While Illinois does not have additional state-specific laws beyond the federal standards, Illinois law requires that products sold in the state comply with all federal safety standards. Therefore, any children’s clothing sold in Illinois must meet these CPSC requirements for flammability and strangulation hazards.

Injuries from baby monitors and electronics

Baby monitors and other electronics carry risk of electrocution if wiring is faulty. Likewise, there are products that could burn a child if the product overheats while in use or charging. 

If your baby or child has been injured from a defective product, you can consult an Illinois personal injury lawyer for guidance on how, when, and whether to file a lawsuit.