Little Tikes Faulty Product - hurt baby - compensation?

[PavlovtheCat]

I bought a Little Tikes 'Tool Box' which is naturally plastic. It is meant to shut so it can be carried.

It does not shut properly, and DS aged 8 months pulled it towards him and it opened with a reasonable amount of force, and cut his forehead.

So i inspected it, to find that one of the rounded edges had a sharp bit of plastic sticking out, where the moulding was not finished properly, and a bit of additional moulding was attached, a tiny bit but very sharp.

The cut is not bad, not needing anything more than a clean, but if it had got his eye it would have been significantly worse, given the sharpness of it.

I have called Mothercare who said bring it in they will look at it, and he looked at one in the Store and said that one had the sharp bit too. He said if it was Mothercare product they could sort it out there and then for me but as it was Little Tike they would need to contact them first, and asked what I wanted to happen. I said at the very least to let Little Tike know they have a faulty product, and a full refund.

He said bring it in and they would refund, and discuss what else needs doing.

Is it reasonable to expect a 'sorry' gift voucher? or am I being a bit mercinary? I posted this here not in AIBU as I am interested in whether I should ask for something more than a refund, rather than a 'you greedy cow' type post

I took back an ELC picnic teaset in a basket once - because my ds1 had managed quite easily to take the basket to bits, and there were long viciously sharp strips of bamboo holding it together

got a refund (they offered an identical replacement first )

nothing else - but I got a letter from ELC HQ saying they had received the compaint via the store and would be "looking into" the product

wasn't hugely impressed tbh

I might call Little Tikes directly then.

They need to take it very seriously, as there are two sharp bits in total, and they will easily hurt babies more than once before it is spotted. I only happened to see it straight away as I was keen to watch DS enjoy it as it was so new, and he happened to have it spring into his face.

They really do need to take it seriously, toys which are dangerous to children are just not acceptable

the strips of bamboo on this basket thing were shockingly vicious, they looked as though they had been deliberate sharpened

if a child (like my ds who is very mobile and active) had been running with it or fallen on it

greensleeves thats really bad I am so on your behalf they just gave you a refund after offering the same item!

You greedy cow

Seriously though, I would write and complain but one thing I'd check first if you still have it, is the packaging - do they state that the toy is suitable for an 8m/o baby?

Worth bearing in mind.

I only bought it today, so yes I have the packaging, and receipt, states suitable for 6mth+.

Sharp bits are surely not good at any age, though, surely? I wouldn't let my dh play with that!

Mothercare are shite tbh. I wrote to them, after takign back a bouncy chair for my son on which the 'safety' harness barely scraped past his thighs. I heard nothing back and the deathtrap chair is still on sale

Well, go to town on the complaint letter then.
Someone on here will have a good template for a sign-off which basically says "I look forward to receiving the compensation I am clearly owed."
good luck

chipmonkey you are right, the sharp bits are not good for any age.

so, what is reasonable then? £10? £20? £30? more? less?

And should i take a photo of the cut, email that to them too?

the only thing is , that they might , if it says on the box 12 + mths , and your DS is 8 mths, say it is not their fault as he should not have been playing with it. but nothing that sharp should be on sale for anyone to play with. but i should magine they will try to use any age restrictions against you

lulu it is 6m+

well, in that case, go forth and ask for ££££££

Seriously? You're going to put a price on your sons injury?
It was an accident and tbh you should have checked the product before giving it to him

should I? should I have to check a toy from a reputable company, to ascertain whether there are sharp bits that make it unsuitable?, all the little corners.

I asked if it was reasonable, and if so how much. If nothing is reasonable I would ask for nothing. I don't think asking is unreasonable, hence it not being in 'aibu'

If I put an actual price on it, anyway, it would be way off what they could afford, given he is priceless

I think asking for a sum of money would be a bit off

I would send a strongly worded letter about breach of consumer trust and companies relying on parental word of mouth and brand loyalty to stay afloat, probably culminating in something like "I await with interest your response and look forward to hearing how you propose to make restitution to me and my family"

if you are hell bent on getting something out of them

I would have been happy if they had withdrawn the toy and apologised, but no cigar

But it isn't Mothercare's fault - surely the blame lies with Little Tikes !

worth a shot, maybe something else from Little Tikes too - I'd go for the car myself! All dc love those blinkin cars and they are mucho money. But I am mercenary as I learnt from a stroppy yank how to negotiate (well wish I had learnt but have been watching her get freebies left right and centre for writing bitter complaint letters!)

I think if they stock and sell it they have a duty of care to THEIR customers

they are selling dangerous goods - they are responsible, as is the manufacturer

Mothercare rely on reputation as much as any other company, they need to apologise and bloody well do something about it

I meant to say I would go directly to Little Tikes as opposed to Mothercare as in all seriousness the problem does need to be addressed by them as they are a global company!

Apologise for what??? If you have a rat tail in your topic bar you sue Mars not the corner store...

I have said I would go to Little Tikes though...Mothercare had said they would contact on my behalf. I have never said I had an issue with Mothercare, but if their CS is crap, best to bypass them altogether though no?