Toys to Avoid this Holiday Season

By Dallas Personal Injury Attorney on December 16, 2015

As the holidays approach and parents begin shopping for toys for their little ones, it is important to keep safety in mind when making toy purchases. While seemingly harmless at first glance, there are several toys on the market that can potentially be hazardous to your children, causing choking, paralysis, and possible strangulation. To help you make informed purchases and keep your kids safe, our firm has created a short list of toys to avoid purchasing this holiday season.

1. “BUD” Wheely Cute Pull Along: This fluffy pull toy for infants has a hidden danger in that the blue hub caps on the toy’s wheels can break off and present a choking hazard.

2. Foam Dart Gun: While other brands of dart blasters such as the popular NERF brand are clearly brightly colored to distinguish them from real firearms, this “toy” is modeled with “ultra-cool styling” to make it look like a real pistol. We have all seen the role that replica guns have had in police shootings where officers believe that these types of dart guns are real, making this gift a no-brainer to avoid.

3. Stats 30 Quick Folding Trampoline: This small trampoline is marketed towards small children and is commonly found in the toy aisles of department stores. If a child falls on their head or neck, they can potentially suffer paralyzing injuries and possibly death.

4. Poo-Dough: This novelty gross-out putty designed to look like feces can pose an allergy hazard to gluten-intolerant children, as the packaging fails to mention that the putty contains wheat. If ingested by an allergic child, it can result in hives, difficulty breathing, and possible anaphylaxis.

5. Smack Shot: “You’ll shoot your eye out, kid!” This toy is similar to a slingshot and can fire its hard ammunition up to 100 feet, potentially causing blindness if an errant shot were to strike a person’s eye.

6. Kick Flipper: Marketed to kids as a “skateboard without wheels,” the packaging of this hard plastic board depicts children using the toy without any sort of protective gear, increasing a child’s risk of suffering a head injury.

7. Leonardo’s Electronic Stealth Sword: Yet another toy weapon makes our list! This hard plastic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles branded sword encourages children to have a “ninja battle” with each other, exposing them to the possibility of facial or blunt force trauma injuries.

8. Kid Connection Doctor Play Set: The thin plastic “tongue depressor” can easily be swallowed, obstructing a child’s airway. Encouraging young children to put any sort of toy into their mouths is extremely dangerous.

9. Pull Along Zebra: Marketed to infants as young as 12 months old, this pull toy has a 21 inch cord that can potentially strangle a baby if wrapped around the neck.

10. Jurassic World Velociraptor Claws: These oversized toy “gloves” shaped like dinosaur claws allow kids to claw each other like prehistoric beasts, though there are no warnings on the box about the potential facial injuries that can result.

While these tips can help you avoid a possible holiday toy disaster, nobody can plan for the unexpected. If a toy should cause your child injury this holiday season, a highly experienced Dallas product liability lawyer from Lenahan Law Firm can file a product liability claim on your behalf in pursuit of compensation for your child’s suffering. Having secured millions of dollars on behalf of our clients, our attorneys can provide the results-driven representation you need to maximize your chances of securing a desirable outcome for your situation. Contact our office online or call us today at (888) 473-2820 to get started!