Bending to pressure, Fisher-Price recalls motorized infant cradle
It had hoped to get by with a warning to consumers about its Rock ’n Play Sleeper, but public outrage compelled the company to take a more drastic measure. Is it too little, too late?
Fisher-Price has been deliberate, perhaps excessively so, in its crisis response.
The company has slowly ratcheted up its message to quell backlash to news that its Rock ’n Play Sleeper has been linked to more than 30 infant fatalities in the past 10 years.
Fisher-Price insists the recall is voluntary and that it takes safety seriously. However, the delayed response has kept the crisis in the news for another week and seems to have undercut the company’s messaging.
Fisher-Price recalled nearly 5 million infant sleepers on Friday after more than 30 babies died in them over a 10-year period.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said anyone who bought a Fisher-Price Rock ‘n Play sleeper should stop using it right away and contact Fisher-Price for a refund or voucher. The sleepers, which are used to put babies to sleep, are soft padded cradles that vibrate.
Fisher-Price and the CPSC said the deaths occurred after infants rolled over from their backs to their stomachs or sides while unrestrained, but did not specify how they died. In an article this week, Consumer Reports found that some of the infants died from suffocation.
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