Tip-over related deaths and injuries are expected to decline as a new U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission mandatory safety standard goes into effect today.

The new rule is designed to protect young children from injury and death from furniture tip-over incidents associated with dressers, armoires, wardrobes and other clothing storage units.

Earlier this year, the commission voted to adopt the ASTM F2057-23 voluntary standard as a CPSC mandatory safety standard.

STURDY, which stands for Stop Tip-overs of Unstable, Risky Dressers on Youth, was signed into law in December 2022.

The CPSC had previously approved a mandatory safety standard to address the risk of clothing storage unit tip-overs, which was to take effect May 24, 2023, but will now be replaced by the new mandatory standard.

As required by STURDY, the voluntary standard had to meet the following performance requirements to become a mandatory standard for protecting children up to six years old:

• Tests for stability when the unit is placed on carpeting.
• Tests for stability with loaded drawers and with multiple drawers open.
• Tests that simulate the weight of children up to 60 pounds interacting with the unit.

The CPSC is hopeful the industry will shift quickly to comply with the standard.

The agency indicated it will actively monitor the marketplace to enforce the new safety standard.

Furniture made prior to Sept. 1, 2023, will not be impacted by the new rule.

There were 234 fatalities resulting from clothing storage unit tip overs from January 2000 through April 2022, including 199 child fatalities.

CPSC estimates that there were 84,100 tip-over-related injuries (an estimated annual average of 5,300 injuries) with clothing storage units that were treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments from 2006 through 2021.

It is recommended that consumers anchor furniture, including dressers, securely to a wall.