Ikea launches home safety app after huge product recalls

As part of an ongoing push for in-home safety, Ikea has launched the Safer Homes app. The platform, developed in-house, is dedicated to preventing furniture-related injuries by way of “raising awareness about common home hazards”.

The app allows users to browse the different rooms in their homes and assess different risks relating to each space. For the bedroom, for example, parents are warned about the risks of toppling chests of drawers; for the kitchen, they’re told about careful positioning of highchairs.

Parents can then add relevant safety precautions to their “to-do” list and tick off the tasks as they complete them. These also vary depending on the child’s age and development stage.

The app and wider campaign are likely a response to a number of safety concerns surrounding the company from recent years. Since 2016, eight children have reportedly died as a result of Ikea furniture toppling over, resulting in 29 million chests of drawers and dressers being recalled.

Beyond drawers, over the years Ikea has recalled a host of other child-related products. These include highchairs, crib mattresses, an indoor swing and a number of blinds.

Reacting to this, the flat-pack giant in more recent years has focused heavily on its product testing procedures, saying it “considers both intended and unintended use” and that even after being launched, products are evaluated on a regular basis.

On top of the new app, Ikea will be launching in-store workshops for parents in select stores from November. They will have a “specific focus on furniture tip-over”.

The chief commercial officer for Ikea US, Antonella Pucarelli says: “It only takes a few minutes to make life at home safer for children, and we want to give parents and caregivers accessible tools and tips they need to protect their little ones.”

Currently the app is available in the US and Canada, while the “Secure It!” campaign and tools can be accessed across the world.