Recalls include possibly dangerous dressers, home generators
Retailer Kirkland’s cites tipping risks on some of its furniture items, while Honda says about 300,000 of its portable generators could begin to leak gas.
Q. We purchased a new chest of drawers at a Kirkland’s store earlier this year and put it in our master bedroom. Twice it has started to tip over when I pulled out a drawer of my clothes, but I caught it both times. I would like to report this problem to the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission, but I don’t know how. Can you help?
A. Sure. The easiest and fastest way to report a problem is to fill out the short online complaint form at the CPSC’s saferproducts.gov website. It takes about 10 minutes.
If you prefer to talk with a live person, call the agency’s toll-free hotline at 800-638-2772.
Though the CPSC would like to have your information about the Kirkland’s product for record-keeping purposes, the agency already knows about the problem. No injuries or deaths have been reported due to tip-overs, but retail giant Kirkland’s recalled about 3,000 dressers it sold in late August because they pose a tipover risk if not properly anchored to a wall. One product is a black dresser with five mirrored drawers, produced by The Design House, and the other is a Crestview Collection cream-colored dresser with six unmirrored drawers.
The dressers in question were sold for about $200 between January 2016 and May 2019.
Call Kirkland’s toll-free at 877-541-4855 or visit www.kirklands.com to see if your chest is part of the recall. If it is, stop using it immediately and place it in a room that children cannot enter.
You can either return the chest to the Kirkland’s store for a refund or call the retailer to receive a free tip-over restraint kit and schedule a free inhome visit to have it professionally installed.
In a far wider recall, American Honda is still in the process of recalling and repairing about 300,000 of its portable gas generators — many of which were purchased by homeowners for backup power — because they can spring a leak and spill gasoline onto the floor, posing a serious fire or explosion risk.
The recall involves some of Honda’s EB2200i and EU2200i models, which sold for about $1,100 to $1,300 from February 2018 through February of this year.
Consumers who think that they may be affected by the recall should call American Honda at 888-888-3139 or visit powerequipment.honda.com to see if they have one of the defective models. If so, they should stop using the machine immediately and contact a local authorized Honda Power Equipment service provider to schedule a free repair.
REAL ESTATE TRIVIA
The Consumer Product Safety Commission ( www.cpsc.gov) has jurisdiction over more than 15,000 types of products, most of which are used in or around the home.
Q. Is Sheetrock the same as drywall? A. Basically, yes. Many companies make drywall, but Sheetrock is the trademarked name of the drywall manufactured by Chicago-based U.S. Gypsum Co.
Drywall is primarily used in the construction of interior walls and ceilings.
Q. I applied for a mortgage to buy a house, but my application was rejected after the bank ordered a copy of my credit report and found out that there is an outstanding legal judgment against me for about $10,000 in child support that I owe to my ex-wife. I don’t dispute that I’m behind on my support payments, but isn’t it illegal for the credit bureau to report such personal information? Can I sue the bureau or the bank for invading my privacy?
A. You could sue, but you wouldn’t win. Federal law allows credit bureaus to record and publish court-ordered judgments, including those for child support, which then stay on the debtor’s record for at least seven years from the date of the judgment.
Frankly, I’m a bit dismayed that you’re trying to buy a house when you’re already behind $10,000 in payments to your ex-wife and kids.
It’s also worth noting that many lenders take an unusually dim view of applicants who have a child-support judgment on their credit record. Banks figure that if someone is willing to turn his or her back on the family after a divorce, there’s no reason to think that the borrower will take payments on a mortgage any more seriously. Do the right thing.
Pay your ex-wife the money that you owe, and don’t even think about buying a house until you’re sure you can handle both your future child-support obligations and mortgage payments. You will likely feel better about yourself, and your kids will feel better about you, too.
Send questions to David Myers, P.O. Box 4405, Culver City, CA 90231-2960, and we’ll try to respond in a future column.