ASTM To Consider Drop Side Crib Safety

Members of ASTM's cribs subcommittee recently submitted a proposal for discussion to modify F1169, the voluntary safety standard for cribs. ASTM International sets these voluntary standards for a variety of consumer products, including many baby products, and manufacturers look to ASTM standards as best practices when designing their products. The subcommittee seeks to address safety hazards surrounding cribs with drop sides, possibly by eliminating drop sides from the safety standards altogether.

Cribs that have drop sides can be dangerous for babies through poor design, though, in a recent press release, industry group JPMA said "drop side hardware rarely fails unless miss-assembled or misplaced upon re-assembly or with secondhand use." When drop sides fail, babies can become entrapped, suffer cuts and scrapes, or fall out of the crib.

Some committee members leaned toward the idea of banning drop side cribs due to concern that it might be very difficult to modify the crib safety standard in such a way to properly address miss-assembly or misuse. A task group will create a draft of the official proposal. If the cribs subcommittee accepts the draft, the proposal would then move through the complete ASTM voting process, and it's possible that drop side cribs would be eliminated from the ASTM voluntary safety standards.

If the crib safety standards are updated, the new standards would apply to newly manufactured cribs only. Consumers who already own a drop side crib would likely not be affected. However, if you own a drop side crib, taking a moment to double check that the drop sides are assembled properly is wise, given the danger that miss-assembled cribs pose.