Ikea reaches largest settlement in child’s dresser-related death

Ikea, the company best-known for producing a massive amount of furniture in the United States and other countries around the world, will now be paying out its largest settlement ever in a child’s dresser-related death. 

The parents of Jozef Dudek are expected to receive a total of $46 million from the company, which has headquarters in Pennsylvania. Jozef Dudek was a two-year-old boy when a Malm dresser from Ikea fell on top of him and caused him to suffocate. It all happened quickly and his parents were left trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. They could not understand how something could happen so quickly and how such a young child could have the strength to pull a large dresser over from the spot that it was in. 

Unsafe Product Led to Deaths of Other Children

After doing research, the Dudeks realized this same dresser caused the death of other children in other areas. Upon realizing that they had a product liability issue on their hands they hired attorneys to handle the legal aspects of the case. The attorneys assisted the Dudeks with filing a lawsuit against Ikea for product liability and personal injuries in the wrongful death of Jozef Dudek who would have been turning five if it were not for the incident with the dresser that occurred in 2017.

Ikea initially recalled millions of its dressers in 2016 after reports of injuries and deaths were made. They had already reached settlements with other parents after these incidents occurred. Despite the recall that was made, the Dudek family still had the Malm dresser in their home. Joleen Dudek, the child’s mother, has stated that she was not aware of the recall. 

She claims that Ikea never contacted her directly to let her know that the dressers were recalled. There is evidence to support her claims. She feels that Ikea did not do enough to make parents aware of the recall and the dangers associated with keeping these dressers in the home, especially in a child’s bedroom.

While the money will not bring Jozef back, it does allow the Dudeks to move forward with taking certain steps to make sure that this type of situation does not happen to any other child. Not only does it teach Ikea a lesson on the importance of promoting recalls and making direct contact with individuals to let them know that something they purchased was recalled, but it also makes other parents aware of these potential dangers.

Lawsuit Filed Against Ikea

In the lawsuit against Ikea, the family stated that Ikea was fully aware of the dangers of their product, but they did not make others aware of those dangers. The suit alleged that Ikea did not take the proper steps to let people know of the hazards associated with keeping these dressers, even though children were continuously getting injured by them. 

Now that the parents will receive the settlement, they have agreed to donate $1 million to several organizations that want to raise more awareness on the dangers of dressers that can tip over. These organizations include Kids in Danger, Consumer Federation of America, and Consumer Reports. They hope the contribution will help these organizations make parents more aware of the dangers of certain products that have been recalled.

Contact a Clark Personal Injury Lawyer to Discuss Your Product Liability Case in New Jersey

Did you or a loved one sustain serious injuries due to product liability in New Jersey? Don’t let the medical bills pile up while you wait for the negligent party or their insurance company to do the right thing. Right now, you need an aggressive personal injury attorney on your side, fighting to get you the compensation you need, want, and deserve. The skilled attorneys at TeamLaw represent clients injured because of product liability in West New York, Perth Amboy, Summit, Newark, and throughout New Jersey. Call 1-800-832-6529 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation about your case. We have an office conveniently located at 136 Central Avenue in Clark, as well as offices in West New York, Perth Amboy, Edison, Summit, Newark, New Brunswick, Orange, Plainfield, Jersey City, Highland Park, and Union City.

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