Loop Cords Still Not Outlawed Despite 232 Deaths
Twenty-one years ago, Matt and Linda Kaiser set out to achieve justice for their daughter Cheyenne by forcing window covering manufacturers to create safer products. Through the years, not only did they create an awareness campaign that nearly every parent can now recite, they’ve also pushed the window blind industry, which largely regulates itself, to create safer products.
Still, there has been more work to be done and more lives to save.
In November last year, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted unanimously to approve a new federal safety standard requiring that all custom window coverings be made cordless. Previously, all standardized coverings were mandated to eliminate deadly cords, which pose a strangulation and suffocation risk that has killed hundreds of children.
This announcement was one of the victorious milestones along the Kaisers’ decades-long journey.
Having lost their daughter in a tragic window blind accident, the Kaisers went out full force after the incident, turning every stone and considering every possibility in order to keep other families from suffering. They established an organization called Parents for Window Blind Safety to educate the public and unite grieving parents to bring an end to horrendous tragedies caused by window blinds.
It’s the team’s hard work which culminated in last November’s successful milestone.
Despite their initial joy, the Kaisers now believe that the new standards are not enough. They discovered a loophole in the regulations which could potentially be deadly if not addressed.
Parents for Window Blind Safety, headed by the Kaisers, and other safety experts say recent changes to the regulations, as specified by the 2022 Proposed Window Covering Safety Standard, are not enough because they do not adequately address deadly loop cords on custom products.
Reports from the CPSC show that these looped operational cords have the highest death and injury rates of all cord types. From 1981 to 2020, 232 fatalities related to these looped cords had been logged.
The Kaisers and other advocates are determined to keep fighting.
It’s been a long journey for the Kaisers – one no parent should have to make – but step by step, together with OnderLaw firm, tragedy is transforming to triumph. The relentless love for a child continues to fuels their dogmatic pursuit to keep other families from suffering the pain that they have endured.
Together, we will continue to sway a profit-driven industry to truly put safety before design.