DS, 8mo fell from trolley yesterday and fractured his skull :(

[rosieposey]

Just wanted to post this to save anyone else going through what we did yesterday.

I never shop at Morrisons (basically because we have lots of other supermarkets to choose from and im pretty loyal to S/burys usually) but yesterday I was nearest to that store so popped in with DS who is nearly 9 months old.

I got a trolley but noticed that it didn't have any belts on it to tie him in. Every other supermarket that i have ever shopped in has a strap and i have always used it. Anyway DS and i were at the checkout and i took my attention off him for about 30 seconds as i began to pack the bags and the next thing i knew he had hit their concrete floor... I didn't see what happened from the time he was happily sitting up in the trolley to when he hit the floor it was all over so fast.

I was obviously in shock and picked him up (he was screaming btw) they took me to the managers office to wait for an ambulance but my DH was working from home and we decided it would be faster to drive to A&E. I asked the manager before i left why they didn't have any straps on their trolleys (the sitting up kind not the baby seat kind) to hold babies and toddlers in and he told me that you had to ask at customer services for them as their trolleys aren't fitted with them due to the straps getting wet and dirty and that is company policy. He also told me that on the handle of the trolley (where you put your hands to push the damn thing) there is a "small sign" - his words- (there is, its the size of a text message) to say to go to customer services if you require a strap.

I have had their area manager on the phone this morning and have explained that as a first time customer i didnt see the two inch notice on their bars to push the trolleys as i had my son in the trolley and i was pushing him?

I feel terrible and responsible for even putting him in a trolley without straps - it could have been a whole lot worse as the doctor said last night that he could have been brain damaged or killed. Whilst i have been in supermarkets i have often seen babies and children in trolleys without straps and thought to myself how irresponsible those parents must be, i myself yesterday was one of them too - i am so at Morrisons for not providing seat belts as a matter of course the way other supermarkets to in their trolleys (or at least the ones that i shop at) but just wanted to say that after all this please dont use a trolley without a strap, its just not worth it, i will never take the chance again and will also be letting Morrisons head office know that next time a child falls out of one of their trolleys because they have no straps fitted to them that it might not be the same outcome.

DS is fine btw, the top of his head is very red and swollen today though. He was admitted at lunchtime yesterday after his xray showed a fracture but by 8 pm the peadiatrician said he could go home as he was his usual bubbly self - needless to say i will be wrapping him up in cotton wool for the foreseeable future and just keeping a very close eye on him for bumps and bruises But just wanted to say IMO Morrisons company policy for having to ask for a strap (when there are no obvious signs saying you need to do that) is Shit.

Well I'm sure rosey feels badly enough about her poor DS without all this kind of talk.

God, your post made me feel sick. Such an awful thing for you to go through. Very very glad your ds is ok today.

and if you have a 3 year old and a 4 year old running rings like I do Belgo, how do I keep and eye on my DD at all times, whilst packing the bags and trying to get 2 hyper toddlers to stay within my line of sight?

Its not that simple.

They should have straps attached there and then.

I've been to Morrisons loads of times and NEVER seen any signs telling me I can get straps from customer services.

It isn't morrison's fault. Sorry if that's not what you want to hear. You are the parent and you should have checked about the straps. You are not a victim here and pushing your guilty feelings on to corporate policy is unacceptable.

Glad your son is OK

gosh ,hope your dc and you are ok

No advice, just lots of sympathy and hugs!!

Belgo yes i did admit that i took my attention away from him for a short while - obviously i didnt have any choice as i was packing a bag and i do feel partially responsible for his injury. however my point is that the information was supplied but was in a place where (1) its not noticeable and (2) its tiny - there were no other safety notices on the trolley and therefore i was not aware that i would be able to obtain a strap.

Can i just reiterate that there is absolutely no way that i wouldn't have requested a strap from customer services if i had known they were in existence - surely it is incumbent on the store supplying the trollies to at least make you aware of extra safety measures. I am sure from a legal standpoint that Morrisons are covered as Ormirian because there is a notice on the trolley handle where your hands cover it but from my postion i cant understand why it is such a small one when i believe that a safety strap (whilst not absolutely guaranteeing your babies safety) really would have helped to avoid yesterdays situation.

I am not trying to pass the buck away from myself or culpability because i can assure you i feel bloody awful today when i look at my precious DS and what could have happened but i do think that safety straps should be available on every trolley that a baby or toddler use and it should then be up to you if you use it, the one time i didn't could have cost my DS his life.

I am thinking a little more on this one. You wouldn't put your 8 month old on top of your kitchen worktop would you? Why would you put him in a trolley unsecured.

Again, glad your son is OK, you were very lucky and we all make mistakes, god do we all make mistakes. The important lesson is the only person responsible for your children's safety is yourself - and if something doesn't look safe, it isn't.

sorry cross-posted with you. The thing is not that you took your eye off him but that you put him in an unsecured seat that was 4 foot off the ground in the first place.

Either don't shop there or at that time (what was so important to get that couldn't wait) or ask for safety devices.

That is where you get to make the decision.

Postal if you had no straps what would you have done? Gone to customer services and checked if they happened to have some spare? If there are no straps on the trolleys then i think i would not be alone in perhaps thinking that there were no straps available if i couldn't see any signs pertaining to the otherwise?

I have not totally blamed Morrisons and i DO take responsibility for my sons accident however i was pointing out to other mums who may well miss the very small sign that there are straps available and you have to go to customer services to ask for them.

Rosieposey- I'm sorry it's not what you want to hear but you willingly put your child into the trolley knowing that there were no straps.

You cannot blame the store when he then fell out because your attention was turned.

I have previously used a cardigan to tie my child onto a highchair or trolley because in Belgium there are almost never straps available because the store owners believe it the parents' responsibility to keep the child safe.

I also understand the health aspect of dirtyustraps, they are hard to clean and with mexican flu around they are just another source of infection.

"By rosieposey Tue 03-Nov-09 15:48:02
Postal if you had no straps what would you have done? Gone to customer services and checked if they happened to have some spare?"

I would not have put an 8 month old in an unsecured seat. I would have grabbed the buggy and a basket and picked up essentials. I would have gone to an alternative shop. I would have shopped later whilst DH watched the children.

Again I am not trying to make you feel bad. I have made many mistakes with my children. I bet you wouldn't do it again and I think the message is - a seat 4 foot off the ground that does not have a harness is not safe for a baby or toddler so don't use it.

I'm going to put some reins in the changing bag in case this happens to me.

Rosey, hope your DS makes a really quick recovery and thank you for mentioning it here because I'm sure we will all be more vigilant as a result.

Ormirian sorry didn't finish what i was trying to say in my post before last - just that what you were saying about your factory probably is the same for Morrisons, from a legal standpoint that they are probably covered as they did make the information available. My point was just that they didnt make the information particularly obvious

The only thing I can think of if there were no straps would be to put the car seat in the trolley and strap the child into that. DD (11m) is a nightmare and I can't imagine carrying her all the way round!

Glad your son is ok. But sorry the store is not to blame. I fear we shall soon see stores removing all baby adapted trollies.

I can assure you postal that i have never put him in an strapless seat before (as have never shopped there before) and never will again.

That's the bit I don't get. I'm sorry I'm not trying to be harsh.

But why do you need telling by a supermarket that an 8 month old can fall from an unsecured height?

I don't understand. He's been your child for 8 months. Surely you know basic safety measures by now?

Rosie read your post with my heart in my mouth... this nearly happened to DS when he was about the same age (also in Morrisons, I'd completely underestimated how mobile he was becoming), I just happened to catch the little bugger angel at the last second, but our story could have been so different.

Just want to say I'm glad he's OK and try not to drive yourself insane with what ifs, you can't watch them every second when the rest of life (shopping, housework etc) has to go on.

All the best

Rosie
Poor DS and poor you, that must have been quite a shock.

Saying that, I do not think that the company are in any way liable for the accident. Those advising you to take legal action are just emphasising how far the UK has come in terms of H&S and Blame Culture.

I don't think I have ever seen a trolley with straps on it in Germany or Switzerland.

Yes, it would be good if the trolley had a strap, or if you had known that you could get one from customer services but the accident could have happened anyway. I have seen my DS wriggle out of the lapbelt on his high chair. We eventually had to buy a harness to secure him there.

Accidents happen. It took a tumble out of his highchair for me to notice that DS was not safe in there, despite the belt.

No i don't think that the store is entirely to blame, just its good to know which stores supply trollies with straps and which don't thats all. I obviously feel that Morrisons should have supplied trollies with straps in line with other stores but that is a personal opinion and may not be right. Dont worry i feel pretty fucking awful as it is, I am just glad that he seems to be alright.

Rosie, was it a normal trolley seat you had your DS in, or one of those that look like a baby carseat?

Hope your DS is doing ok.

I felt pretty fucking awful when DS2 drank from the bottle of nurofen I'd left in his bedroom with the top tightened

I felt pretty fucking awful when DD1 fell off the changing table when my back was turned and she rolled for the first time.

I felt pretty fucking awful when DS2 swallowed one of those balls from DS1's magnetix thing

Oh and when I forgot to strap DD2 into her car seat when she was 7 weeks old because I just did

I have a whole range of things that have happened to my kids. Any parent will have. We are all lucky to have lived and learned.

Guilt comes with the job I'm afraid

Yes postal of course i am aware of the basic safety measures, as you must know though it is possible to drop the ball sometimes. I would not for a moment have put him in there if i had thought that he was able to wriggle out. I do know him but babies change from day to day and what he is able to do now is not the same as a week ago. I didn't actually post this to lay all of the blame on Morrisons, i do think and always will think that they should supply straps on their trolleys but as i have said its just my personal opinion but one of the first things i said to my husband when i saw him is i feel responsible as i didn't see him move in the seat. My attention was elsewhere.

My son sustained his injury because i was trying to pack a bag and didnt have my sole attention on him, i didnt know they supplied straps and their signs are crap and on a handle that your hands cover - thats all. I just want Morrisons to either replace their trolleys with straps that are permanently on there OR make the signs obvious (perhaps from the place that you get trolleys from).

DS also fell from the car seat when my Dad picked him up before he did up the straps and the whole thing flipped over. He did not fall far, but it was onto concrete, right on his forehead.

My Dad was beside himself, I was almost as worried about him as about DS.

These things happen. If you were to post the question, "Share your moments of sheer terror and guilt with me" you would get 200 postings.

Try not to dwell on it, if we spend all day forseeing possible dangers for our DC we would not let them get out of bed.

I do agree that Morrissons should make the availability of safety straps for their trolleys more prominent.