The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a recall for more than 3.6 million Little Giant brand ladders after receiving dozens of reports of injuries, caused by a locking device not becoming fully engaged and sending its user tumbling.
Injuries reported include head trauma and skull fractures, the New York Post reported
Little Giant ladders, according to the recall and the company, have a mechanism called “Rapid Locks” that are used to adjust the height of the multi-position devices.
“The ladders can retract suddenly if the Rapid Locks are not fully engaged, posing a fall hazard to consumers,” the company warned in a statement.
“The company has received 25 reports of the ladders retracting, 19 of which resulted in injury,” according to the Post.
The tabloid also reported:
Those incidents resulted in three reports of head injuries which, according to the recall, include traumatic brain injury, skull fractures, concussions, vision loss, hearing loss and cognitive impairment.
The company has also received 16 reports of other injuries such as joint or bone fractures, lacerations and bruising. Overall, the company has received 39 reports of the Rapid Locks not working properly.
The recall is pretty sweeping as it involves 11 different ladder products and 130 different models, their model numbers listed on the company’s recall website. They range in cost from $100 to $1,000. The recall does not necessarily require the consumer to return the ladder but to add warning labels.
If the consumer has not received the kit, they can receive one by entering their information on the recall website.
Little Giant has mailed kits that contain supplemental warning labels to affected ladders while also instructing users to visually verify that all Rapid Locks are fully engaged before climbing.
“You should stop using your ladder until you have received and applied the warning labels included in the repair kit according to the enclosed instructions, which contain further guidance on safely operating the Rapid Locks and maintaining the Rapid Locks with lubrication,” Little Giant said in its statement announcing the recall.
“If a lock does not function properly after this evaluation, the company will offer the choice of a replacement ladder of the same or equivalent model or a refund ranging from a depreciated value determined by date of purchase up to full purchase price for ladders purchased within the past 12 months,” the company also said.
Breitbart News contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times true crime best seller House of Secrets and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.
