Is THIS unsafe??

[Hyperquiet]

https://www.therange.co.uk/furniture/living-room-furniture/bookcases-and-shelving/bookcases/homcom-kids-bookshelf-with-storage-drawer-bookcase-with-wheels/#8567890

Bought it to cover a quad socket on the wall and Internet wire as they're low down. Because of said socket and wires it won't be tethered to wall.

It will be in living room where baby won't be unsupervised but l suppose as he grows he may climb things?

It is a child's bookcase/storage though.

It is bought now anyway.

Thoughts welcome!

https://www.therange.co.uk/furniture/living-room-furniture/bookcases-and-shelving/bookcases/homcom-kids-bookshelf-with-storage-drawer-bookcase-with-wheels/#8567890

I wouldn’t want it to fall on my toddler, no.

I also wouldn’t block off sockets. You’ll just make them more exciting. UK sockets are safe and don’t need covering.

Loose wires, infront or or behind furniture if it’s not tethered, doesn’t seem the safest. Could you pin them along the skirting if they can’t be moved?

Thanks. This is the wire Box with a thick wire coming out the bottom.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404293975251?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=ldWJQTr2QOy&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

There's nothing dangerous about the Virgin media box - there's no power in the cables.

I think the photo is misleading - it's only 90cm high, 60 wide and 30 deep - the way the woman is positioned makes it look much bigger. (Think 3 school rulers high 2 school rulers wide and 1 school ruler deep)

It's wheeled so is designed to be free-standing.

Not what you asked but I would advise against ordering anything from Marketplace via The Range.

My item arrived damaged and it’s been weeks trying to arrange collection and refund as all correspondence has to be via Webchat.

I didn't know this. Thank you.

Yes that's right. I think it is 18 kg in weight.

Oh no. Haven't opened up the box yet but hopefully this isn't the case!

If you did want to attach it to the wall you could via shelf brackets or thick webbing screwed into it and then the wall but it doesn't look like it's necessary.

FYI: You should avoid using any plug covers in the UK. We have safety features built into our sockets which other countries don't have and socket covers actually make our sockets more dangerous.
Our plugs have a longer top pin, when this is inserted it opens up the bottom two holes which the metal pins go into, socket covers also do this which means you can get metal items in the bottom holes which you couldn't if you hadn't used them. They are a safety feature necessary in the US and Europe but not here.

Kids climb. Tether it to the wall by placing a shelf or something behind it so you can still access sockets. Better to be safe.

Attaching to the wall isn't necessary because of the size you think?

Thanks RE plug covers - I learned this from some previous comments on other threads on this site!

It says it's 90cm that isn't huge, I expect that photo isn't helping as it looks bigger than 90cm unless the mum is tiny.

That first lip of the first shelf looks perfect for a toddler to hang off, particularly if they've pulled out the draw and are climbing up but the base also looks quite wide and stable. I personally would attach it to the wall if it is as tall as it looks but it depends on what it looks like when you actually build it and just how wide it is.

Yes it's 90 cm tall. Thank you.

I wouldn't tether to a wall.

I don't think most people tether their furniture to the walls. Most children go through a climbing phase and I guess if you're home alone a lot with young children, having a completely child proof room is a godsend, but you do have to draw the line somewhere otherwise you'd literally never take your eyes off your children.

I'm not criticising people who tether furniture, just saying that it's not essential.

It's worth tethering wobbly things like TVs. A friend had a TV fall on her cruising toddler. Luckily he was fine, just a bit shocked but she was extremely upset by it and kept thinking about what could have happened.

A 90cm bookshelf I wouldn't tether. TBH we haven't tethered our 4x4 Kallax shelves and DC have climbed up them a couple of times. They don't fall.

@tribalmango Aren't you aware of the many deaths and serious injuries caused by falling furniture every year on young children climbing on them? Products are recalled all the time and furniture sold with appropriate wall attachments.

I guess not. I was a terrible parent it seems.

Do parents insist and check that furniture is tethered when their visit grandparents and friends?

I think a lot of those online "marketplace" things have all the same sellers as amazon, Wish, and ebay - all Chinese dropship products with questionable quality/safety standards and hugely misleading product photos. It's annoying because we are so used to the protections by things like Trading Standards and EU commerce standards that a lot of people don't even consider the fact that dropship companies rarely stick to these things. If they get challenged they just withdraw the product/company and launch it again under a new name because they aren't trading on reputation anyway, they are just trying to be the cheapest option.

In terms of a bookshelf, I think you'll be OK in terms of safety but I am always cautious about buying any kind of toy or safety product from shops like that. For cheap furniture I basically only shop at Ikea now - nobody else does cheap as well as they do.

Since you used the past tense I'm guessing your children are grown up? I think it is much more well known now. When my DS1 (a teenager) was little I don't think it was common practice, but with the internet here to warn us of every danger I do think modern parents tend to be much more safety conscious. Plus, every piece of Ikea furniture I've bought (which has been loads in the last ~13 years and can't remember previous to that) has come with a wall tethering kit. If you're building it anyway it's just one extra step, doesn't take long. The only reason we haven't bothered in our current flat is because it's solid concrete walls and you need a hammer drill. When we've lived places with normal walls, we did tether tall cupboards/shelves.

I would not be concerned about visiting other people with untethered furniture because I don't tend to leave DC unattended at other people's houses but also, it's only a potential hazard, not a hugely likely one so if they are only spending short stretches of time there, the chances they'll have an accident with a piece of furniture is much lower anyway.

It'll be heavier than 18kg with filled with books etc. It needs tethering or attaching to the wall. If you need to access the plugs you can get strong fabric tethers that slide of their hard plastic mounts. I follow Meghan's Hope in Facebook. Our plugs an Internet have always been accessible to our toddler and they haven't needed to much telling to not touch but all kids are different.

Just saw it's only 90cm - that's short (they are clearly trying to make it look bigger in the photo. It is slim though so I'm not sure.

That flat pack stuff is lighter and therefore far more prone to tipping than solid furniture. Think light enough to tip but heavy enough to still crush your toddler. The stepped shelves also make it inviting to climb and it says it has a hole on the back for an anti tip device therefore I would assume it needs it needs one and wouldn’t risk it. Basically everything from ikea which is similar style furniture to this comes with an anti tip kit these days. But you don’t need to cover the plugs or the virgin box, both are safe, so if you can’t anchor it then I’d just return it.

Leaving the safety aspect out it for a moment, it would be really bad manners to let your toddler clamber up the furniture in a friend or relatives house! So you’d hopefully be supervising them closely enough to make sure that didn’t happen and therefore no risk of tipping.