Bounce houses have become very popular at children's birthday parties and other events. Unfortunately, bounce houses are causing an increasing number of injuries among children in Tennessee and across the U.S., according to a new report.
The report said that bounce house injuries to children increased 15-fold from 1995 to 2010. Most of the increase happened during the last few years between 2008 and 2010, showing that more recently purchased bounce houses may pose a big risk to children.
Experts say that the increase of bounce house injuries are a result of more bounce houses being used, but there are other factors that have contributed to more injuries among children. The report said that while more injuries are being reported, bounce houses don't appear to be more dangerous than they were in the past, leaving experts to believe that more children are using bounce houses.
Safety experts say that in addition to more children using bounce houses, the reduced price of bounce houses has also contributed to the increase in injuries. The price of bounce houses have decreased in the last few years to make it more affordable for people to have a bounce house rental business. Bounce houses from rental companies are not as safe due to the decreased quality and cheaper products being used to make the bounce houses.
Experts have started to warn parents about using a bounce house from rental companies that rent mass-marketed bounce houses because they may not meet safety standards and could even be defective. If the bounce house is a defective product, that could significantly increase the risk of children suffering an injury.
While there have not been a lot of reports of product liability lawsuits against bounce house manufacturers yet, there may be an increase in lawsuits filed against bounce house manufacturers if injuries continue to climb.
Source: News Inferno, "Bounce House, Moon Walk Injuries on the Rise," Cynthia A. Diaz-Shephard, April 16, 2013