Child safety: A fallen mirror left Sarah Hunstead with 100 cuts all over her body as a toddler, now she is warning others of the dangers | Exclusive Interview

Sarah Hunstead knows all about the dangers furniture can pose to young children.

As a paediatric nurse who once worked in hospital emergency departments, she would often see distraught parents in the aftermath of an accident at home.

But Hunstead, who is the founder of CPR Kids, also has a more personal reason for wanting to raise awareness – as a young child she was seriously injured at home.

“When I was a toddler back in the 80s, I had a freestanding mirror fall on me,” Hunstead tells 9honey.

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“The large mirror was leaning against a wall in my parents’ bedroom. I have no recollection of how it happened, and my mother was shocked that I was able to pull it down onto myself.

“Fortunately, I escaped serious injury and was lucky enough to escape with around a hundred superficial cuts all over my body.”

Hunstead said her father had since told her the accident happened a day after the family moved into a serviced apartment while awaiting settlement on their new home.

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“The mirror was a tall one that was supposed to be mounted on a wall, but it hadn’t been done,” she said, adding that luckily the mirror was frameless and “quite light”.

Still, the outcome could have been very different – something that still haunts her father today.

“His biggest thought was how fast it happened and the importance of making sure where you are staying is toddler-proof, even if you are only there for a short time,” she said.

Hunstead is speaking out as a new Australia-wide mandatory standard comes into effect from Sunday (May 4) to reduce the risk of death and injury from toppling furniture.

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In announcing the new standard, the federal government said 28 people, including 17 children under the age of five, had died in Australia from toppling furniture since 2000.

Each year, more than 900 Australians required medical assistance injuries from toppling furniture.

Children under four are most at risk of death or injury from falling furniture, including chests of drawers, wardrobes, bookshelves, TV units or other tall items.

The Consumer Goods (Toppling Furniture) Information Standard 2024 was introduced on May 3 last year, but suppliers were given one year to prepare for the changes.

The new standard is being rolled out by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) Product Safety Australia, which recommended the changes.

The ACCC is responsible for product safety across Australia and shares the role of regulation with state and territory regulators. 

It says household furniture and TVs posed a danger if they fell or toppled over as they could hit, trap or crush someone, resulting in broken or dislocated bones, head and brain injuries, crush injuries, suffocation, asphyxiation and death.

“Toppling furniture and televisions can be significant hazards, particularly to young children,” Hunstead said.

“Common causes include unanchored furniture, items like bookshelves, chests of drawers and entertainment units can easily tip over if not secured to the wall.

“Unanchored mirrors leaning against walls also pose a toppling risk.”

Children climbing on furniture also poses a risk.

“Young children may climb furniture to reach objects, shifting the centre of gravity and causing tip-overs,” she explained.

“A good example of this is chest of drawers. Toddlers may open the drawers to climb up onto the top of the dresser, changing the centre of balance and causing it to topple over.

“Placing heavy objects, such as televisions, on top of furniture increases instability, and the items may be pulled down on top of the child.”

There have been a number of high-profile cases both here and overseas of children being killed by toppling furniture.

Among them was the 22-month-old son of a parenting influencer in the US, who died in February after a large mirror that was leaning on a wall fell on him fracturing his skull and causing a traumatic brain injury.

Lindsay Dewey has since taken to Instagram to share photos and videos with her almost 60,000 followers to warn others of the dangers.

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Hunstead said furniture of any weight poses a risk to children.

“Even furniture that doesn’t seem heavy can be dangerous,” she said.

“The force exerted by a falling object doesn’t solely depend on its weight but also on its height and the speed of the fall.”

Hunstead said anchoring furniture and televisions is crucial to prevent toppling.

“Anchoring is recommended for all tall or heavy items, regardless of their weight,” she said.

“Many families may not have been aware of these dangers in the past. However, increased awareness and proactive measures can significantly reduce the risk of injury or death.”

“Many people think that because they are renting that they aren’t allowed to secure furniture to the wall [however] in NSW a landlord cannot unreasonably refuse consent for minor changes.

“Securing furniture to a wall (other than a tiled wall) if needed for the safe use of furniture is considered a minor change, for which a landlord is not permitted to refuse consent.”

Hunstead said while the new standard was an “excellent step towards increasing household safety” she would like to see mandatory inclusion of anchoring devices when purchasing furniture.

What is the new mandatory information standard

From May 4, 2025, some furniture products will need to comply with the new standard.

Fines and penalties may apply for failure to comply with a mandatory safety or information standard. The maximum penalty is $50 million for businesses and $2.5 million for individuals.

Suppliers may need to recall a product if it doesn’t meet the mandatory standard or is potentially unsafe.

Under the new Australia-wide mandatory standards, new warnings and safety information must be provided when supplying three categories of furniture.

Category one includes clothing storage units with a height of 686 millimetres or more, such as wardrobes which have one or more doors or drawers, or bookcases.

Category two is entertainment units of any height. 

Category three includes hall tables, display cabinets, buffets and sideboards that are 686 millimetres high or greater.

What’s not included

The standards do not apply to furniture that was bought by a consumer and is being resold; second-hand furniture, including furniture that was previously bought and used commercially; or furniture designed to be fastened to a wall or other structure and that can’t be used unless it’s attached.

What must suppliers do

Suppliers will need to attach permanent warning labels to furniture; display point of sale warnings, both in-store and online; and include information about the risk of toppling furniture in any instruction manuals provided with the furniture.

Clear graphic and plain English warnings and safety information must be provided with furniture and at point-of-sale.

Warnings must include internationally recognised safety alert symbols and pictograms showing a child standing or climbing on the toppling furniture, with a cross or strikethrough.

A pictogram showing furniture anchored to a wall is recommended but not a requirement.

The Consumer Goods (Toppling Furniture) Information Standard 2024 sets out the mandatory standard requirements for toppling furniture.

ACCC advice to consumers

When shopping for furniture, the ACCC offers the following tips:

• Examine the furniture to make sure it is stable.
• Pull out any top drawers of a chest of drawers or open doors on other furniture items and apply a little pressure to see how stable the furniture is.
• Make sure the drawers don’t fall out easily.
• Look for built-in drawer stops that limit how far drawers can be extended or interlocks that prevent more than one drawer being opened at a time.
• Look for furniture with sturdy backing material which increases stability.
• Look for low-set furniture, or furniture with a sturdy, stable and broad base. It’s less likely to tip over.

The ACCC says the best way to prevent furniture from tipping over is to secure it to the wall or floor using anchors.

If your furniture doesn’t come with anchoring hardware, you can buy what you need from a furniture retailer, hardware store or a specialty store for baby goods.

As well as securing your furniture and TVs, the ACCC recommends:

• Keep your heaviest items at the bottom of your drawers or shelves. Furniture that is top-heavy is easier to tip over.
• Do not place heavy items such as TVs or items that are attractive to children on top of furniture.
• Put locking devices on all drawers as this can prevent children from opening them and using them as steps.

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