Following an Additional Child Fatality, IKEA Recalls 29 Million MALM and Other Models of Chests and Dressers Due to Serious Tip-Over Hazard; Consumers Urged to Anchor Chests and Dressers or Return for Refund
Kids’ product recall 16-204. Announced by CPSC on Jun 28, 2016.
- CPSC: stop using it
Watch and the shortlist are kept with a free account, on every device. Your watch list. CPSC’s own notice is on cpsc.gov.
The short answer
Announced by CPSC on Jun 28, 2016. Copied from CPSC on Oct 19, 2026.
- Stop using it what CPSC tells owners to do now (needs attention)
- Refund or Repair what’s offered
- About 8 million MALM chests and dressers and 21 million additional children’s and adult chests and dressers in the U.S. (In addition, 6.6 million were sold in Canada) units, as CPSC gives them
- Reported injuries, in the notice (needs attention)
Every line below is in CPSC’s own words, with its source beside it.
What’s wrong with it?
The recalled chests and dressers are unstable if they are not properly anchored to the wall, posing a serious tip-over and entrapment hazard that can result in death or injuries to children.
CPSC, Recalls API. Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily.
What should you do?
Consumers should immediately stop using any recalled chest and dresser that is not properly anchored to the wall and place it into an area that children cannot access. Contact IKEA for a choice between two options: refund or a free wall-anchoring repair kit. Consumers are entitled to a full refund for chests and dressers manufactured between January 2002 and June 2016. Consumers with chests and dressers manufactured prior to January 2002 will be eligible for a partial store credit. Consumers can order a free wall-anchoring repair kit. Consumers can install the kit themselves or IKEA will provide a one-time, free in-home installation service, upon request. Consumers can reorder the kits throughout the life of their chest and dresser.
CPSC, Recalls API. Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily.
- What the company offers to fix a recalled product or vehicle: a repair, a replacement or a refund, as the recall notice says. For a vehicle, dealers make the safety repair free. Follow the notice’s own steps, or contact the company it names. Source: CPSC; NHTSA (49 U.S.C. 30120).: refund or repair.
- How to reach the firm: IKEA toll-free at 866-856-4532 anytime or online at www.IKEA-USA.com/recallchestsanddressers or www.IKEA-USA.com and click on Product Recall for more information on how to receive a refund or free wall-anchoring repair kit.
Which ones are recalled?
The recalled children’s chests and dressers are taller than 23.5 inches and adult chests and dressers are taller than 29.5 inches. The 29 million units of recalled chests and dressers include: MALM 3-drawer, 4-drawer, 5-drawer and three 6-drawer models and other children’s and adult chests and dressers. The MALM chests and dressers are constructed of particleboard or fiberboard and are white, birch (veneer), medium brown, black-brown, white stained oak (veneer), oak (veneer), pink, turquoise, gray, gray-turquoise, lilac, green, brown stained ash (veneer), and black. A 5-digit supplier number, 4-digit date stamp, IKEA logo, country of origin and “MALM” are printed on the underside of the top panel or inside the side panel. Since 1996, IKEA chests and dressers have been labeled to identify IKEA, the model name and the manufacturing date.
About 8 million MALM chests and dressers and 21 million additional children’s and adult chests and dressers in the U.S. (In addition, 6.6 million were sold in Canada) units, as CPSC gives them.
Children’s and adult chests and dressers.
CPSC, Recalls API. Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily.
CPSC’s photos
CPSC shows 6 photos on its notice. Hearth Record doesn’t copy them; each opens on cpsc.gov.
Who made and sold it?
- Made by IKEA North America, Conshohocken, Pa.
CPSC, Recalls API. Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily.
Was anyone hurt?
In February 2014, a 2-year-old boy from West Chester, Pa. died after a 6-drawer MALM chest tipped over and fatally pinned him against his bed. In June 2014, a 23-month-old boy from Snohomish, Wash. died after he became trapped beneath a 3-drawer MALM chest that tipped over. In a February 2016 incident, a 22-month-old boy from Apple Valley, Minn. died when a MALM 6-drawer chest fell on top of him. None of the chests or dressers in the above-listed incidents had been anchored to the wall. In addition to the three deaths, IKEA received reports of 41 tip-over incidents involving the MALM chests and dressers, resulting in 17 injuries to children between the ages of 19 months and 10 years old.
CPSC, Recalls API. Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily.
What the record doesn’t say
- The notice lists no UPCs, so check the model, the description and the photos.
- The notice lists no model numbers in a field of their own; its description may give them.
- How many have been returned or fixed isn’t in the notice.
Hearth Record wrote these lines.
Sources
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U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Recalls API.
Checked Oct 19, 2026. Updated daily. Public domain (U.S. Government work). CPSC asks to be credited, and that no endorsement be implied.
Recalls of kids’ and home products are from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). CPSC does not endorse Hearth Record. Copied on Oct 19, 2026.