Historic Wrongful Death Settlement Reached by Family Against Ikea

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on January 11, 2020

In a landmark move by the Swedish furniture mega-company Ikea, the family of a child who died after a dresser fell on them will be receiving $46 million as a settlement. Spokespeople for Ikea indicated that they understood there was no amount of money that could make up for the tragic removal of a child. The massive settlement is currently the largest wrongful death involving a child settlement that has occurred in the history of the United States.

According to news reports, it was in May of 2017 when the child, a 2-year-old, was killed by the 30’’ tall 70 lb. Malm dresser. The child was in the family’s home at the time of the incident, and it is believed that the dresser fell over after the child was attempting to use it to support themselves. That a 2-year-old was able to bring a 70 lb. dresser crashing down is a terrifying reminder of just how poorly constructed these dressers were.

The 2-year-old was, sadly, not the first child to die as a result of the dressers toppling over. The years 2014, 2015, and 2016 all saw children under the age of 3 suffer fatal injuries as a result of the dresser’s faulty design. After the first two deaths, the company began to instruct consumers to use wall mounts when installing the dresser. After the third death, which happened in 2016, Ikea issued the first of its recalls. This recall, which affected millions of the Malm dressers, proceeded a $50 million settlement for the three families devastated by the loss of their children.

In addition to the monetary settlement, the initial case resulted in Ikea stating that it would not sell any dressers or chests in the United States that did not meet or exceed the voluntary standards set by this country for storage units used for clothing.

In 2017, Ikea once again issued a recall for the Malm dressers, stating that the objects and all in the Malm line proposed a severe risk to physical safety unless fully secured to a wall. It is not known when the California family who reached the $46 million settlement with Ikea earlier this year had purchased their dresser.

Sources:

• Ikea to pay family $46m after child killed by falling drawers

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.