ValcoBaby Booster Seats Recalled Due to Fall Hazard

On Tuesday, October 23, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced that Unique Baby Products USA LLC, d/b/a ValcoBaby, of Brooklyn, N.Y., is voluntarily recalling about 975 units of ValcoBaby “Joey” booster toddler seats for strollers. These products were sold nationwide from June 2011 through June 2012 for between $80 and $100 at numerous juvenile products stores, websites, and valcobaby.com.

The seats, which were manufactured in China, have a black color fabric seat on a white metal base frame. Only booster seats with batch numbers 3111, 7819, 7822 and 7831 and model number TOD1058, TOD9109 and ZEE0649 are included in the recall.
The recalled items pose a fall hazard because the spring button mechanism that secures the booster seat to the baby stroller may disengage, which can allow that toddler to fall off the chair. So far, ValcoBaby has received two reports of the seat disengaging from the stroller causing two toddlers to fall from the seat.
At any point during the booster seat design and manufacturing process, significant failures may contribute to products’ hazards, including (1) missteps during the early design stages; (2) inadequate testing to ensure safe performance; and (3) marketing efforts that include inadequate instructions and warnings, or even fail to include any relevant cautions. Even one act of negligence during the process from a product’s conception to its sale can cause catastrophic injuries and wrongful death once the product reaches unsuspecting consumers.
If you or a family member have suffered significant personal injuries as the result of a defective product or negligence, contact the law office of Swartz & Swartz, P.C. Call (617) 742-1900 in the Boston area, or for clients in greater Massachusetts, New England, or other states across the U.S., call toll-free at 1-800-545-3732.