U.S. says kits for drop-side cribs are inadequate; Canadian company disagrees

OTTAWA — The head of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Tuesday recommended North American parents purchase a new crib altogether because the repair kit offered in the largest Canadian crib recall is made only of plastic.

The comments were immediately contradicted by Health Canada and went against the commission's statement issued late Monday, when it announced the recall of more than 2.1 million cribs, including nearly one million in Canada, dating back to 1993.

"With respect to the plastic retrofit kits that are now being distributed by Stork Craft, Health Canada has tested the kits at its Product Safety Laboratory and has confirmed that cribs (with the kits installed) remain compliant with the requirements of the Cribs and Cradles Regulations," said a statement from Health Canada Tuesday night. "Furthermore, as intended, the kits successfully immobilize the drop-side of the recalled crib."

The drop-side cribs, linked to the deaths of four babies in the United States and three non-fatal entrapments in Canada, were manufactured by Richmond, B.C.-based Stork Craft Manufacturing Inc. Some of the cribs, responsible for 43 incidents in Canada and 67 in the U.S., also were sold under the Fisher-Price logo.

Health Canada's Tuesday night statement said that it was first alerted to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's concerns about the cribs on Aug. 20. The Canadian agency upgraded that to a recall investigation on Oct. 8.

When asked about the reliability of the repair kit offered by the B.C. company to affix the drop-side of Stork Craft cribs, (U.S.) Consumer Safety chairwoman Inez Tenenbaum challenged the reliability of the repair kit touted by both the commission and Health Canada to fix the potentially deadly problem.

"It is made of plastic, so if you can afford another crib that does not have a drop-side, or even if you can't afford it, there are many charities in communities that will provide you with a new crib. That really is the safest way to handle this situation," Tenenbaum told NBC's The Today Show.

Meantime, Stork Craft Manufacturing's president and CEO said Tuesday that most drop-side cribs implicated in incidents where infants were trapped were used improperly, often with modified and broken parts.

"In the majority of incidents, the cribs were being used with broken parts, parts with pieces missing, parts that were damaged or with modified or homemade parts," Jim Moore said in a statement. "In some incidents, the crib was in a state of significant disrepair.

"In other cases, the consumer had installed the drop-side rail upside down contrary to the instructions that are glued to the mattress base of each crib."

But Tenenbaum cast doubt on the safety of all drop-side cribs, saying a formal ban of that type of crib is likely coming in the United States, now that the global standards body, ASTM International, is set to publish new safety standards that no longer will allow movable side rails on full-sized cribs.

"They have been shown to not be reliable and over time, when the parent raises the side up and down, they are becoming detached from the cribs, Tenenbaum said.

"We're in the process of rule-making, and we will take a hard look at this, but I think in the future, these drop-sides will be banned."

Health Canada did not rule out a ban Tuesday night, saying that "Canada is considering future steps, and a public consultation would take place before any regulatory steps would be taken."

Stork Craft's voluntary recall comes as the company is in the midst of phasing out its drop-side model altogether in place of fixed-rail cribs.

Late Monday, the U.S. commission said parents should immediately stop using the crib and wait for the repair kit.

On Tuesday, Health Canada said not all consumers will need the repair kit. Parents should only be concerned about the safety of the crib if the plastic drop-side hardware shows any signs of damage or if the drop-side is installed up-side down, the department said.

"If there is reason for concern, consumers should immediately stop using the recalled cribs and find an alternative, safe sleeping environment for their baby."

In such cases, Health Canada said parents should wait for the repair kit that converts the drop-side of the crib to a fixed side.

Also on Tuesday, a class-action lawsuit was launched against Fisher-Price and Stork Craft in a number of provinces. Lawyer Tony Merchant said litigation has been filed in Alberta and British Columbia, with more claims scheduled Wednesday in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Ontario and the Atlantic provinces.

The lawsuit seeks a full refund for the recalled cribs or up to $500 and general damages.

Many people interested in reaching Stork Craft's office in Richmond to order a kit could not get through Tuesday, as the company was inundated with calls from anxious parents throughout North America. By the afternoon, the company reached out to customers on Twitter to promote a special website set up to order the repair kit online.

The same problem with customer service existed in January, when Health Canada publicized a voluntary recall of 494,000 other Stork Craft drop-side cribs due to a problem with the metal bracket used to support the mattress frame. At the time, the crib recall was the largest-ever in Canada.

Health Canada had an opportunity to propose a ban of drop-side cribs in Canadian law when the department put forward tougher crib regulations in April. But the government opted against coming down against drop-side cribs — responsible for more than five million crib recalls in the U.S. and Canada since 2007.

However, retailers and crib manufacturers are already moving away from drop-side cribs after ASTM International indicated last March that these type of cribs will no longer be certified for sale in Canada and elsewhere; the new standards, approved officially on Nov. 15 and to be published as early as next week, are considered voluntary safety guidelines, but manufacturers are expected to follow them because the major industry players were involved in their development and signed off on the proposal in March.

Retail giant Toys 'R' Us, anticipating the change in cribs standards, already stopped ordering drop-side cribs from manufacturers in March and inventory is expected to be gone from all Canadian and U.S. stores by next month.

Walmart Canada is in the same boat, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, almost every drop-side crib that has been shipped to Sears Canada since October by its main supplier, Stork Craft, has been modified so that all these cribs are permanently fixed in the up position, unable to move up and down.

Spokesman Vincent Power said Tuesday the chain is pulling all floor models with a drop-side so customers won't see any more inventory when they're browsing in the baby section. Also, all cribs profiled in the next spring catalogue will be non-drop-side.

Drop-side cribs have been popular with parents over the years, especially with people who aren't tall, or people with bad backs. But government regulators, charged with investigating the deaths of babies in these cribs, have noticed a problem with the rail that moves up and down, designed to help parents place their child in the crib or to take them out.