IKEA pays large civil penalty to CPSC

December 1st, 2008 by Kurt Niland

candles250 150x150IKEA North America Services, LLC of Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, has agreed to pay a $500,000 civil penalty for its failure to follow procedures issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Commission (CPSC).

The CPSC announced that Swedish retail giant inadvertently sold some potentially dangerous outdoor candles and failed to immediately report incidents connected to use of the defective candles.

The CPSC says that the hazardous candles can flare up unexpectedly when consumers attempt to blow the fames out, potentially causing burn injuries. The candles are also a fire hazard because they are capable of flaring when lit according to the CPSC.

Approximately 133,000 six-pack candle sets were sold in the U.S. from February 2001 to July 2005. An additional 1.3 million sets were sold worldwide in the same time. During that period, IKEA received 32 reports that the candles scorched and started fires. Twelve injuries ranging from mild to serious burns were also reported by consumers who attempted to extinguish the candles by blowing them out.

IKEA and the CPSC began recalling the candles in May 2006.

Federal law requires manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to immediately report to the CPSC any information that reasonably supports the conclusion that a certain product may pose an unreasonably high risk of , death, or other hazard.

IKEA announced on its website its support for www.recalls.gov — the CPSC’s new effort to consolidate all product recalls, whether mandatory or voluntary, across agency lines.

More information about the defective candles can be found on .gov or IKEA’s website.

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This entry was posted on Monday, December 1st, 2008 at 8:00 am and is filed under News, product liability. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

  • There is an aspect to proving design and manufacturing defects little known to attorneys practicing products liability tort. The root cause of defects leading to injury and/or death is often the underlying management, operational and quality processes employed by the manufacturer, distributor or service provider. While attorneys spend (literally) years and thousands of dollars sifting through forensic evidence, discovery and testimony of opposing experts, investigation into the standard of care exercised by the manufacturer is often overlooked.
    Uncovering substandard management, manufacturing and quality practices can drive cases into more rapid and conclusive settlements. Through discovery and depositions, compelling evidence can be uncovered that demonstrates how business leaders are often oblivious to the potential for liability built into their usual and customary business practices. Since the jury is shown objective evidence of how the manufacturer was not only responsible for producing the subject defect, but how their company carelessly and recklessly condoned processes that were destined to produce defects, awards are often elevated to punitive damages.
    The tools for this non-traditional approach to discovery and trial strategy are found in the disciplines of quality management, business process management and organizational behavior, not in the law library.

    Tom Taormina, CMQ/OE, CMC
    tt@taorminagroup.com
    http://taorminagroup.com
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