Antifreeze
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Home Workshop Tools & Equipment · CPSC Code 966
Up 12% over 5 years
The verdict
Antifreeze carry a danger score of 37/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 1,282 ER-treated injuries a year that are rising by about 12% over the last five years.
- 37/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 1,282
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 11.1%
- end in hospital admission
- 15-24
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 966 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 37/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for antifreeze - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume1,282 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)11.1%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+12%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Antifreeze (CPSC product code 966, in the Home Workshop Tools & Equipment category) generate an estimated 1,282 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 25,648 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 37/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are rising by about 12% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (2,058 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2006 (875 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for antifreeze is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 10,604 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by burn, scald to the face (1,771 cases). The 15-24 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 5,527 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 11.1% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 0 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how antifreeze fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2024-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 2,157 | 764 | |
| 5-14 | 502 | 193 | |
| 15-24 | 4,493 | 1,034 | |
| 25-34 | 4,090 | 1,010 | |
| 35-44 | 3,253 | 893 | |
| 45-54 | 2,635 | 425 | |
| 55-64 | 2,141 | 386 | |
| 65-74 | 952 | 0 | |
| 75+ | 721 | 0 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Face | Burn, Scald | |
| Lower Arm | Burn, Chemical | |
| Lower Arm | Burn, Scald | |
| Face | Burn, Chemical | |
| Hand | Burn, Scald | |
| Eyeball | Derma/conjunct | |
| Eyeball | Burn, Chemical | |
| Hand | Burn, Chemical | |
| Eyeball | Other | |
| Face | Other | |
| Wrist | Burn, Scald | |
| Foot | Burn, Chemical | |
| Wrist | Burn, Chemical | |
| Neck | Burn, Scald |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
55YOM CAME TO THE ER WITH COMPLAINT OF DRINKING ANTIFREEZE. HE STATES THIS WAS ACCIDENTAL AND NOT INTENTIONAL. PATIENT STATES THAT THEIR ROOMATE AT THE *** DECIDED SHE DIDN'T WANT TO LIVE ANYMORE AND SHE DRANK AND DIED FROM ANTIFEEZE INGESTION. THE PATIENT BECAME THIRSTY AND AND TOOK A DRINK NOT REALIZING WHAT IT WAS. DX: ANTIFREEZE INGESTION.
8YOM C/O INGESTION. WAS A 35 GALLON TANK FULL OF WATER WITH ABOUT 3 GALLONS OF RV COLLANT MIXED IN. STUCK FINGER IN THE LIQUID AND TASTED IT OFF OF HIS FINGER. ABDOMINAL PAIN INITALLY BUT NON CURRENTLY. DX: INGESTION OF FOREIGN SUBSTANCE
23MOM C/O POSSIBLE INGESTION OF ANTIFREEZE. WAS FOUND PLAYING WITH AN EMPTY ANTIFREEZE BOTTLE IN A CAR DURING A CHURCH EVENT. DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE
5YOM C/O POTENTIAL INGESTION OF ANTIFREEZE. CHILD WS FOUND PLAYING WITH AN EMPTY ANTIFREEZE BOTTLE IN THE CAR DURING A CHURCH EVENT. DX: ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF SUBSTANCE
25YOM, RADIATOR FLUIDS SPILLED ON HIS BACK WHILE OFFROAD DRIVING, C/O BACK PAIN W/ LESIONS CONSISTENT WITH BURNS DX: BACK BURN, 4%BSA
^28YOF PATIENT WAS OVER THE HOOD OF A CAR, CHECKING THE ANTIFREEZE AND THE TOP BROKE OPEN AND ANTIFREEZE SPRAYED HER IN THE FACE, SMALL BLISTER TO HER LOWER LIP, REDNESS TO THE RIGHT THUMB DX: CHEMICAL BURN, CHEST TIGHTNESS, FIRST DEGREE BURN
36YOM WAS WORKING ON HIS SISTER'S CAR IN AN ENCLOSED GARAGE AND INHALED SOME OF THE ANTIFREEZE AND DEVELOPED NAUSEA AND VOMITING DX:NAUSEA, VOMITING
54YOF SLIPPED ON ANTIFREEZE AT HOME, LANDED ONTO HER BILATERAL KNEES AND HANDS. HAS PAIN IN HER RIGHT HIP AND BILATERAL KNEES. DX: GROUND-LEVEL FALL
^40YOM TO ER FOR ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF ANTI FREEZE & BRAKE FLUID PT WAS SIPHONING FLUIDS FROM HIS CAR, PT SAYS HE GOT SOME ANIT FREEZE & BRAKE FLUID IN HIS MOUTH UNSURE IF HE SWALLOWED SOME OF IT, HAS BURNING IN STOMACH DX ACCIDENTAL INGESTION OF TOXIC SUBSTANCE
^28YOM TO ER FOR POSSIBLE INGESTION 2 HRS AGO, PT WAS SIPHONING ANTIFREEZE & BRAKE FLUID FROM HIS CAR& PT SAYS SMALL AMOUNT WENT ON HIS LIPS & HE LICKED IT, STATES UNSURE IF HE INGESTED ANY DX ACCIDENTAL INGESTIONOF TOXIC SUBSTANCE,
34YOM PT CHANGING THE ANTIFREEZE IN HIS CAR & HEAVY WINDS BLEW ANTIFREEZE INTO MOUTH, COUGHED WITH BLACK SPECKS DX: INFLUENZA B, SUSPECTED EXPOSURE TO HAZARDOUS CHEMICAL
39YOM WAS WORKING ON HIS CAR WHEN THE RADIATOR CAP FLEW OFF AND ANTIFREEZE SPRAYED IN HIS FACE DX: SCALD BURN TO FACE
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to antifreeze on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are antifreeze?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, antifreeze have a danger score of 37/100 (low risk). An estimated 1,282 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from antifreeze?
The most common injury is poisoning to the all parts body, accounting for approximately 10,604 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from antifreeze increasing or decreasing?
Up 12% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for antifreeze injuries?
The 15-24 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 5,527 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by antifreeze?
Of all ER visits involving antifreeze, approximately 11.1% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (88.9%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with antifreeze?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Home Workshop Tools & Equipment
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 37/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 15-24 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
