Dorel Recalls Maxi-Cosi Mico Infact Car Seats

Just a little more than a month after recalling over 200,000 play yards, Dorel is recalling 22,850 Maxi-Cosi car seats. There is a problem with the connection between the infant seat and the base. In an accident the base can fail causing injury. The seats were manufactured between 18 February 2008 and 28 June 2008. Seats produced after the June date are safe because they have a newly designed spring.

The company will be contacting registered owners.(Of course infant seats are designed to be used for a baby's first year of life. So contacting registered owners may not be of much help.) Since they redesigned the spring in 2008, they knew there was a problem but are just issuing the recall. WTF? And if you are buying a new car seat beware, lurking somewhere out there are 200 of the defective car seats.

Until you get the part needing repair, you can make sure that your baby is latched safely into the base by pulling up on the seat.

Dorel issued the following statement:

Dorel Juvenile Group (DJG), in cooperation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), has announced an extension of a voluntary recall of certain models (of the Maxi-Cosi® Mico™ Infant Child Restraint System Base. This voluntary recall is in response to Dorel Juvenile Group’s identification of a small number of units where the car seat will latch into the base, but may not fully lock. No injuries have been reported.

As indicated in the instructions, pulling on the seat to check for appropriate installation, will normally allow the seat to fall into place. This notice potentially affects 22,850 units. Less than 200 remain on retailers’ shelves. Models produced after June 28, 2008 have the redesigned base with the new spring.

The Maxi-Cosi Infant Child Restraint Systems affected include:

• Maxi-Cosi Mico Infant Child Restraint System, Models 22-371 and 22-372
• Maxi-Cosi Infant Child Restraint System, Base Only Model 22-515

Dorel Juvenile Group will contact all registered owners and provide them with information on how to obtain a fix kit for the base. Consumers may visit http://safetynotice.djgusa.com/mico/ to see if their Mico infant car seat is affected by this recall. Until consumers receive the fix kit they can continue to use their current car seat and ensure a secure connection by pulling up on the carrier to confirm it is engaged with the base. Consumers who have not registered their car seat should visit the DJG website at www.djgusa.com/usa/eng/Safety-Notices to verify if their model is included in this recall. The affected seats should not be returned to the retailer. Consumers with further questions may e-mail the company at consumer@djgusa.com or call our toll-free number, 1 (877) 657-9546, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EDT.

As a leading provider of car seats and other juvenile products, Dorel Juvenile Group is committed to manufacturing products with the highest quality and reliability standards for its users. Our first priority is making products that help keep children secure. To this end, we are dedicated to providing products upon which parents and caregivers can rely. Dorel Juvenile Group urges placing your child in an age/weight/height-appropriate car seat to enhance your child’s safety while riding in a motor vehicle.

We sincerely regret any inconvenience that this voluntary safety recall may cause. Thank you for your cooperation.



This is a voluntary recall and there seem to be no reports of deaths. So if you are looking into a Mico, it may still be a decent option. It is the car seat recommended for a lot of strollers, and it gets a lot of good reviews.
Maxi-Cosi Mico Infant Car Seat

Maclaren Stroller Recall

Maclaren strollers are as posh as it gets in my little hick town. (I have an Orbit, but I never got an actual baby to put in it. And have returned to my life of sin. But that's another story.) So this comes as a shock, Maclaren is recalling every stroller they have produced as far back as 1999. That's over a million strollers. It seems that little children have been losing fingers in the latches.

HIGHLY REGARDED FOR SAFETY, MACLAREN VOLUNTARILY PROVIDES CHILD PROOF SOLUTION FOR ITS STROLLERS SOLD IN THE U.S.

(South Norwalk, CT— November 9, 2009) Consistent with Maclaren USA’s  unwavering commitment to child safety we are providing U.S. consumers notice of a voluntary recall of all Maclaren umbrella strollers sold in the U.S.  In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Maclaren is providing free of charge to all affected consumers and retailers a kit to cover the elbow joint on the umbrella stroller’s side hinge mechanism which can pose a potential finger hazard to a child when the operator is opening or closing the umbrella stroller.  

Safety is Maclaren’s first priority and through this voluntary effort we urge consumers to contact us immediately to obtain the kit which consists of hinge covers designed specifically to fit all Maclaren umbrella strollers. These easy to fit hinge covers will insure proper precautions are taken by the operator to avoid injury when opening or closing the umbrella stroller.

This voluntary recall does not relate to U.S. standards not being met. Maclaren umbrella strollers meet all U.S. ASTM & JPMA compliance standards. These certifications guarantee Maclaren umbrella strollers meet the required maximum safety standards. Maclaren umbrella strollers have served as the benchmark for quality for umbrella strollers and have maintained outstanding records for safety along with durability for over 40 years.

To obtain the hinge covers consumers can visit our website at

www.maclaren.us/recall or contact us toll-free at 877-688-2326 between the hours of 9am – 5pm Eastern Time. Maclaren U.S.A. stresses all operators read the instruction manual prior to use which contains valuable safety tips and service recommendations.

Since 1967, Maclaren has engineered its strollers to specifically exceed global standards for safety, reliability and durability. Nothing carries the Maclaren name until it is researched, tried and tested. Maclaren’s formal compulsory Zero Tolerance policy of safety issues is built upon the provenance when you buy something for your baby excellence is the least you expect.                                                                       

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Maclaren Press Release

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Important Safety Tips from Maclaren

Always read the operating instructions before use—don’t force the mechanisms—stop and check the instructions.

Keep children clear of the stroller during opening and folding.

Never leave your child unattended in a stroller – even with the harness fastened.

Always use the safety harness.

Don’t overload the stroller. Heavy items hanging from the handles can cause the stroller to topple over."

Problem With Bugaboo Takata

The Bugaboo Takata hasn't been released in the United States yet, but there have already been troubling problems reported in Europe. It seems that Takata (And Bugaboo is placing the blame squarely on Takata. They keep calling it the "Bugaboo car seat developed by Takata.) didn't correctly attach all of the handles to the car seat shells. So when the car seat is being carried by the handle they can detach. Also the car seat doesn't always attach properly to the stroller adapters. These are problems you would expect from a cheap car seat. Bugaboo is saying that they have had only three reported cases of the problem though, so it may just be a quality control problem.

Bugaboo has directions on how to check for the manufacturing defect on their European websites. If you car seat is affected stop using the car seat and return it to where you purchased it.

Bugaboo has been having a lot of problems with their products lately. There was a recall for the Bee and reported problems with the the Cameleon's handles.

1.6 Million Delta Cribs Recalled

If you have purchased a Delta crib check it now, because with a number like 1.6 million you may actually have one. Delta has a crib recall website with more information.

BEIJING (Reuters) - China, embroiled in a tainted milk scandal that has made thousand of infants sick, said it took product safety very seriously, especially where children were concerned, after a new report about faulty Chinese-made cribs.

New York-based Delta Enterprises recalled on Monday almost 1.6 million cribs made in China, Indonesia and Taiwan after it said two babies died. It did not give details.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said he had no information on the cribs but urged consumers and producers to report faulty products.

"I can say the Chinese government takes product safety very seriously, especially when it comes to children's products," he told a news conference, adding that China would act on any complaints.

The China National Furniture Association told Reuters it was not aware of the recall, but said Chinese companies may not be the ones to blame.

"It's not clear which side should take responsibility," said association deputy director-general Zhu Changling. "It's possible that the safety risks lay in the designs or standards made by clients, while Chinese companies were just following up."

The crib recall is one of the largest in U.S. history and follows another recall of 2,000 cribs, also made in China, which was issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission on Thursday.

It comes about a year after a massive recall of Chinese toys tainted with lead and sold by Mattel Inc.

More recently, milk contaminated with melamine killed at least four children and prompted Chinese-made products to be pulled from shelves around the world. Tens of thousands of children fell ill with kidney stones.
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