KidCo is voluntarily recalling about 220,000 PeaPod Travel Beds because young children can roll between the inflatable mattress and the side of the tent, making breathing difficult.
The KidCo PeaPod Travel Beds and PeaPod Plus Travel Beds are small, portable sleeping tents meant for use by infants from birth to 3-plus years, depending on the model. The tents have a zippered side to take the child in and out of the unit, and it also has an inflatable air mattress that fits into a zippered pocket underneath the floor of the tent.
The product may have led to the death of a 5-month-old boy in New York City, who was put in the travel crib for a nap in December 2011. However, the official cause of death was listed as undetermined.
There were also reports of nine other children, three in Canada and six in the U.S., who became trapped or became physically distressed while inside the crib. Two of the cases included infants who were found crying underneath the mattress that had not been inserted into the zippered bottom pocket.
Ken Kaiser, president of KidCo, said this is the company's first recall.
KidCo is offering kits to fix the problem. They include supports that strengthen the sides of the tent and a thinner mattress. The kits will vary depending on the model and will start shipping out to consumers this December.
Models/colors included in the recall are:
- P100 -- Teal
- P101 -- Red
- P102 -- Lime
- P103 -- Periwinkle
- P104 -- Ocean
- P201 -- Princess/Red
- P202 -- Camouflage
- P203 -- Quick Silver
- P204 -- Sagebrush
- P205 -- Cardinal
- P900CS -- Green
The model number can be found on a small tag on the underside of the tent.
The products were made in China and sold at independent specialty stores nationwide and online at Amazon.com from January 2005 through the present for $70-$100.
For more information on this recall, consumers can call KidCo toll-free at (855) 847-8600 between 9:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or visit the company's website at www.kidco.com/recall-information.
