Millions of cribs have been recalled and pulled from the shelves in stores across the country. However, now they're popping up for sale in other places, everywhere from rummage sales to Craigslist.com.
We searched Craigslist to find cribs for sale in the Central New York area, and we found two postings for cribs from recalled brands posted in the past few days. We contacted the posters and asked for model numbers to find out if that specific crib was recalled. One poster didn't respond, but took the post down.
Another gave us the model number and asked us to look into it. The poster couldn't find that model number on the list of recalled cribs. We called the company and found out that crib model had been part of a voluntary recall two years ago. In this case, the owner can call the company and receive a replacement part.
Cribs have been recalled for a range of reasons. Some just have faulty parts that need to be replaced. Others are taken off the market completely because babies could get caught and suffocate.
Rose Walsh, the Health and Safety Coordinator for Child Care Solutions, says parents have to be their own advocates because recalled cribs can be sold in many different places.
"That's kind of the nature of the beast,” says Walsh. “When someone is done with a piece of equipment, they don't want to just throw it away. They want to make a little bit of money, help out the next family. They don’t necessarily know that there is something wrong with it or there are parts missing because they didn't have a problem with it.”
If you're in the market for a used crib, your best bet would be to get the model number from the seller. You can check that number on the Consumer Product Safety Commission's website. It might also be a good idea to call the company who makes the cribs. Those companies can tell you if a particular model number has been recalled and if replacement parts are available.
Walsh says make sure cribs have slats that are no more than 2 3/8 inches apart, and there are no missing or loose parts. If you are buying a drop side crib, make sure the side goes completely up and locks into place. Also, make sure the bedding fits inside the crib.
We’ve checked with several local agencies to see how they’re handling the crib recalls. The Salvation Army store doesn’t accept cribs and many other baby items because of the frequency of recalls. Vera House uses donated cribs in its shelter, but it accepts very few of them. The director of Vera House says any time a new crib comes in, workers at the shelter make sure it isn’t involved in a recall, and any time a new recall is announced, the cribs that are already being used are checked.
