According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were a total of 42,700 appliance instability and tipping-related accidents between 2000 and 2006.  Most of these were related to tipping of furniture and appliances, like televisions.  In the same period of time, 180 fatalities resulted from instability and tipping-related accidents.  96 of these resulted from the tipping over of furniture, while 87 occurred when televisions tipped over.  In most of these accidents, children below the age of 10 were the most frequent victims, accounting for nearly 45 percent of all injuries and close to 80 percent of all fatalities.

Sources of Instability and Tipping Hazards in Appliances

Household appliances that are most often linked to instability and tipping hazards include trash compactors, stoves, ovens, cooking ranges, refrigerators, washing machines and dishwashers. Typical injuries reported include abrasions, contusions, lacerations, fractures, sprains, and in some cases, organ damage. 

Differences between Instability and Tipping

The Consumer Product Safety Commission defines instability and tipping as two different concepts for the purpose of classifying such hazards.  Instability is defined as a problem with the center of gravity of an appliance that renders it unstable. Tipping, on the other hand, involves interaction in the form of exerting force or pressure on the appliance, causing it to topple over. 

Over the years, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced recalls for many appliances prone to toppling over.  The most recent and high profile was the Sears stoves and cooking ranges recall in 2008. These were made of lighter lower grade steel in an effort to cut production costs, and were prone to falling over when pressure was placed on the doors of the ovens.  People, including children standing nearby, suffered burn injuries, scalding and crushing injuries. 

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) mandates safety standards for the sturdiness and stability of stoves and ranges, and requires that they be provided with brackets to help secure them to countertops and walls before use to avoid tipping over. However, even as the company manufactured these brackets, it did not train its delivery crews to install the brackets.  Consequently, homeowners remained unaware of the dangers of tipping over of the stove, and as a result, there were several injuries as stoves and ranges toppled over.