....To write a letter of complaint to a cookware shop after DD cut her hand on a KNIFE ?

[NomDePlume]

DD and I have just been into town to buy a few bits and bobs to make halloween biscuits. We went into one store (Cook Shop, I think they are national chain) to look for some halloweeny biscuit cutters. The shop is a little over stocked and it is a bit of a nightmare to navigate due to narrow aisles etc.

Anyway, DD knows not to touch things, I'm forever telling her, but alas she is 6 and therefore most of the time it goes in one ear and out the other.

Most of the sharp knives in this store are kept in cases and are therefore not a risk, but there is a display rack running down the middle of store which is at waist height. In this open rack there are alsorts of things, peelers, wine stoppers etc. Unbeknownst to me there are also knives, sharp knives, blade of about 5". These knives are very brightly coloured and they do have pull off knife guards (which is something I suppose).

Before I have a chance to even spot what she is doing (we are walking in single file in the shop and she is right behind me), she had whipped a knife out of the display and took the guard off to see what it is. Blade slices the heel of her hand, cut is not deep but it is bleeding.

Staff member spots us and asks if DD is ok. I say she is fine but could we have a tissue/plaster or something. Staff member goes off to find first aid kit and accident book. Whilst she is away another staff member at the till says nonchalantly 'Oh a little boy did the same thing a few days ago'. I was a bit gobsmacked at that one, then she went on to say 'It's so difficult for them [the children] to resist, what with them being bright colours'. By this point I am &

I know that as her mother I am partly responsible but AIBU to think that the staff are stupid/negligent to put sharp, brightly coloured (therefore bound to grab the attn of a small person) at child height ? Especially given that another child did the same thing and the staff did feck all to move the knives out the reach of littlies ?

Surely the point that the OP is making is that a child had been hurt a few days earlier and that it might be a sensible measure to display knives out of reach of small children.

I am positive that the shop could find something else to fill the gap that the knives left, if I remember rightly the Cookshop branches are filled with tat that noone could possibly need.

Agree that the shop could move those knives to a greater height, wouldn't kill them.

At the same time, am a bit surprised that you should think it normal for a 6yo not to be trusted around knives. If your child had been smaller then I would understand more. But wouldn't occur to me to have to keep my own kitchen knives out of reach when I had a 6yo. (And when mine were really small, then I'd keep them strapped in the buggy in a cook shop).

bubbaluv that occured to me also

I'd be very upset if this had happened to my DD, one because it is my responsibility to protect her at all times and I'd not done that and secondly that the shop had not used their common sense in moving the knives slightly higher so that they were out of reach of exploring little hands.

I'd call the shop and comment on this in a very nice manner and hope that they move the knives in question but at the end of the day it is your responsibility to safe guard your DD.

I'd say at that age, it is partly your dd's responsibility.

Agree with other posters that it is your responsibility to watch your children carefully. There are dangers everywhere in all sorts of shops - glass bottles, jars etc, should they all be 'out of reach'? I am surprised that you were able to see details in the accident book of a previous similar accident. Surely this should have been private.

I am really suprised that most of you think that its mainly mum's fault

yes I agree that you should teach your child not to touch..but kids will be kids and they will pick things up .. even the best behaved do.

I have learned a trick from this that in single file places put your child in front where you can see them.. yes common sense when you point it out .. but probs wouldnt have occured to me.

but the law says this:
Shop keepers have a responsibility to ensure children cannot get their hands on knives

they are clearly in breach of this law

nomdeplume I would definately write a letter to head office.. if it has happened once (or twice in this case) it will happen again... and amybe with more tragic consequences

Message withdrawn

Knives should be out of reach of all to tbh. It doesn't matter what age your child is (or adult) it depends on mental capacity - what about child of 15 but who has the mind of a 3 year old?? Anything sharp and dangerous should be kept out of reach of children in particular imo. If adults want to buy objects like that then surely they would understand why they weren't within easy reaching distance?? Yes we should all be taking responsibility of our children in shops (everywhere) but it's easy to be distracted - especially shopping and worse if you have more than one to watch.

Sorry your child was hurt, but YABU.

I think someone covered it when they asked about people driving past 6 year olds. If you don't have them under control they are in danger in a lot of places. (and yes it is bloody difficult. You need two sets of eyes for a start)

The knife guards are already a concession since it means you can look away for a moment because it takes a few seconds to get to the sharp bit, but there are probably no shops where you can be sure they will be safe for any length of time (about 12 and half seconds in my experience)

I know I would hate to go to a shop and find that I had to call the manager to open a case to examine/buy a knife, a glass tumbler, a boiled sweet (that someone might choke on) etc

The knives should be out of reach. A polite suggestion needed, I think.

However, if I couldn't trust my childrne not to touch anything when I had told them not to, I wouldn't be going into cook shops and the like.

Wow - what a lot of smug mummies on here .

NDP - I too have a small child that likes to touch things in shops [shock horror] and agree that the shop should seek to put things like this out of reach if at all possible.

Plus, like many shops (and this is a pet hate of mine - esp when pushing a buggy) it seems as though they haven't made the isles wide enough - so it would have been very hard for you to watch her.

Shop is at fault here without a doubt.

To be honest though, Banana, 6 years old isn't that small

Was going to post what Bubbalov said - though with the enmphasis not so much on 16yolds as perhaps criminal elements who could take a knife and use it, or threaten the staff to hand over cash etc.

can't think of any cook/kitchen shops near me which would have kniv es so easily within reach. A case for Trading Standards ?

YANBU - knives should simply not be in reach of a 6 year old in a public place, and I'd be very surprised if it isn't against the law.

I would expect my dd not to touch anything in a shop, however I also expect that she would fail to live up to my expectations.