Hotel Crib Safety

Estimates show that children under age 2 spend more than 7 million nights per year in hotels, motels and resorts. Many of the families that visit hotels and motels each year use the cribs and play yards provided by the facilities. Is this a wise decision?

The National SAFE KIDS Campaign recently visited a random sampling of 90 hotels and motels in 27 states and the District of Columbia. Of the cribs that they inspected, 82 percent had at least one safety hazard, including loose hardware or lack of secured mattress supports that could entrap a baby; soft bedding, including quilts, comforters or pillows that could cause suffocation; and adult-sized sheets that pose a strangulation and suffocation hazard. Of the play yards and mesh cribs inspected, 52 percent had at least one safety hazard, including tears or holes in the meshing, which pose an entrapment risk to babies, and soft bedding.

"Whether the hotel is on 5th Avenue or Main Street, there's no guarantee the crib you request will be safe and in good repair," said CPSC Chairman Ann Brown. "Parents who are traveling should not have to worry about the place they put their child down to sleep."

Heather Paul, Executive Director of the National SAFE KIDS Campaign, said: "This informal assessment simply raises a red flag for the hotel industry that they might unknowingly be putting babies at risk. We want hotels to know there are simple steps they can take to help ensure a safe sleeping environment for their youngest guests."

The Consumer Product Safety Commission encourages parents to call ahead and ask the hotel or motel in which they are planning to stay, if they have a system in place to ensure that their cribs are safe.

"CPSC, National SAFE KIDS Campaign Announce Crib Safety Initiative"