37
CPSC NEISS Data 2005–2024

Beach Chairs Or Folding Chairs

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.

Floors, Walls & Ceilings · CPSC Code 4016

Down 10% over 5 years

The verdict

Beach Chairs Or Folding Chairs carry a danger score of 37/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 8,032 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 10% over the last five years.

37/100
danger score (low risk)
8,032
ER visits per year (avg)
5.2%
end in hospital admission
0-4
most-injured age group

Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 4016 - last data year 2024.

PlainSafety danger score

0/100100/10037/100
PlainSafety danger score

Source: CPSC NEISS danger-score model As of 2024

How this 37/100 score is built

The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for beach chairs or folding chairs - no opinion, no editorializing:

  • Injury volume8,032 ER visits/yr
  • Severity (hospitalization rate)5.2%
  • Fatality rate0.05%
  • 5-year trend-10%

See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.

What the CPSC Data Shows

Beach Chairs Or Folding Chairs (CPSC product code 4016, in the Floors, Walls & Ceilings category) generate an estimated 8,032 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 160,642 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 declining by about 10% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (10,039 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2021 (6,628 estimated visits).

The single most common ER diagnosis for beach chairs or folding chairs is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 15,230 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (13,630 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 32,255 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 5.2% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.05%) result in fatality.

Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 117 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how beach chairs or folding chairs 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.

8,032
Injuries / Year
5.2%
Hospitalization Rate
0.05%
Fatality Rate

Annual Injury Estimates (2005–2024)

6K7K8K9K10K11K 20052008201120142017202020232024 10K
Estimated annual emergency-room visits for Beach Chairs Or Folding Chairs, CPSC NEISS

Source: CPSC NEISS national injury estimates As of 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 17,115 15,140 32,255
5-14 9,266 8,817 18,083
15-24 4,077 4,917 8,994
25-34 3,897 5,635 9,532
35-44 5,284 8,206 13,490
45-54 5,184 10,942 16,126
55-64 6,478 11,409 17,887
65-74 8,156 11,185 19,341
75+ 10,218 14,718 24,936

Most Common Injuries

Body Part Diagnosis Est. Injuries
Finger Laceration 15,230
Head Internal Injury 13,630
Finger Fracture 8,736
Face Laceration 6,947
Finger Contusions, Abr. 5,709
Lower Trunk Strain, Sprain 4,737
Lower Trunk Other 4,549
Lower Trunk Contusions, Abr. 4,189
Upper Trunk Contusions, Abr. 3,382
Face Contusions, Abr. 3,311
Upper Trunk Fracture 3,273
Head Laceration 3,218
Lower Trunk Fracture 3,019
Lower Leg Laceration 2,916
Finger Amputation 2,890

Severity Breakdown

Treated/examined And Released 93.3% (149,965)
Treated And Admitted/hospitalized 4.3% (6,885)
Treated And Transferred 0.9% (1,516)
Left Without Being Seen 0.9% (1,502)
Held For Observation 0.4% (700)
Fatality Incl. Doa, Died In Er 0.1% (81)

ER Visit Narratives

Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.

Age 82 · Female · Finger · Laceration · 2024

82YOF STS FINGER CAUGHT IN A FOLDING CHAIR YESTERDAY, SUSTAINED A PINCHED BLOOD BLISTER, THEN WHILE DANCING FINGER WAS SQUEEZED AND IT BROKE OPEN, HAS PERSISTENT BLEEDING+FINGER LACERATION DX L 5TH FINGER LACERATION

Age 50 · Female · Knee · Other · 2024

50YOF COMES TO THE ER WITH COMPLAINTS OF KNEE PAIN. SHE STATES SHE WAS GETTING INTO LOUNGE CHAIR, ON A CRUISE SHIP, AND THE CHAIR WAS LOWER THAN EXPECTED. SHE TWISTED HER RIGHT KNEE AND FELL PART OF THE WAY INTO THE CHAIR . X-RAYS DONE ON THE SHIP WERE NEGATIVE BUT SHE CONTINUES TO HAVE PAIN. DX: PAIN KNEE RIGHT

Age 74 · Female · Lower Arm · Fracture · 2024

74YOF WAS AT BEACH WHEN A HEAVY GUST OF WIND GRABBED A BEACH CHAIR AND FLUNG IT AGAINST HER RIGHT ARM DX:FRACTURED RIGHT RADIUS

Age 210 · Male · Finger · Laceration · 2024

10MOM HAS A SMALL LEFT 5TH FINGERTIP LACERATION AND SUBUNGUAL HEMATOMA AFTER A FOLDING CHAIR CLASPED ON FINGER DX: FINGER LACERATION, SUBUNGUAL HEMATOMA OF FINGER

Age 79 · Female · Head · Laceration · 2024

79 YOF AFTER A FALL. PATIENT STATES THAT SHE WAS SITTING IN A FOLDING CHAIR, LEANED FORWARD WHEN THE CHAIR FELL OVER. SHE HIT THE RIGHT SIDE OF HER HEAD ON A SHARP OBJECT AND SUSTAINED A LACERATION. DX SCALP LAC, FALL

Age 218 · Female · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

18MOF WENT TO SIT IN A FOLDING CHAIR IN A PUBLIC PLACE AND IT COLLAPSED SHE FELL BACKWARDS STRIKING HEAD ON THE GROUND DX: CLOSED HEAD INJURY

Age 78 · Female · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

78YOF WAS GETTING OUT OF A LAWN CHAIR WHEN SHE LOST HER BALANCE AND FELL DX: FRACTURED RIGHT HUMERUS, CLOSED HEAD INJURY

Age 88 · Female · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

88YOF WAS GETTING OUT OF A BEACH CHAIR AND FELL STRIKING HER HEAD DX: CLOSED HEAD INJURY FRACTURED THORACIC SPINE

Age 5 · Male · Elbow · Other · 2024

5YOM TO ER AFTER FALL OFF FOLDING CHAIR AT HOME 1 HR AGO, PT FELL ONTO RIGHT ELBOW , PT HAS RIGHT ELBOW PAIN DX PAIN RIGHT ELBOW

Age 36 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

36YOM C/O FINGER LACERATION AND PAIN TO RIGHT HAND S/P PT STATES TWO COMPLAINTS. ONE, HE PINCHED HIS FINGER IN A FOLDING STADIUM CHAIR CAUSING A LACERATION ON HIS FINGER. TWO, HE WAS WAS INVOLVED IN AN MVC LAST NIGHT WHERE HE WAS REARENDED AND HAS WORSENING RINGING IN HIS EARS. NO MENTION OF PT'S RESTRAINED IN CAR NOR AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT. DX: HEAD INJURY, FINGER LACERATION AND TINNITUS

Age 76 · Female · Upper Trunk · Fracture · 2024

76YOF SAYS 10 DAYS GAGO WAS STANDING ON A FOLDING CHAIR IN HER BATHROOM & PUTTING UP A SHOWER CURTAIN & FELL ON HER BATHROOM SINK ON HER CHEST PT HAS CHEST PAIN ON RIGHT SIDE STILL FROM FALL, NO HEAD INJURY DX FALL, CLSD FRACTURE OF ONE RIB ON RIGHT SIDE

Age 63 · Female · Elbow · Contusions, Abr. · 2024

63YOF PRESENTED AFTER FALLING OUT OF A LAWN CHAIR, ONTO THE CONCRETE. THE PT WAS CONFUSED AND UNSURE WHAT LED TO HER FALLING OUT OF THE CHAIR. ABRASION NOTED TO THE ELBOW. DX: ACUTE PAIN OF RT SHOULDER, RT ELBOW PAIN, FALL FROM CHAIR.

Consumer Incident Reports

Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.

9/7/2022 · No Incident, No Injury · The Home Depot · Michigan

Adirondack plastic molded chairs with cell phone and cup holder molded in frame from Home Depot are unsteady and legs bow out even on very light weight people. The chairs move and "settle" under every person that sits in the chair. At one point the back legs to a chair were completley flattened. There has not been an injury yet, but I do see this as a danger.

9/5/2023 · Injury, No First Aid or Medical Attention Received · IKEA North America Services, LLC · California

IKEA GUNDE folding chair (https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/gunde-folding-chair-black-00217797/). Chair is lightweight and not stable. When person sitting leans forward (weight toward front of chair), the chair will either slip (when on hardwood or vinyl)and/or tip forward (carpet). Personal experience - Both adults and children have fallen multiple times using these chairs on multiple occasions. Many consumers have had the same issue per the reviews on the company website for this item.

9/5/2022 · Incident, No Injury · ShelterLogic, LLC · New York

My husband was sitting upright in a beach in a Rio Beach Big Kahuna Beach Chair ( https://rio.shelterlogic.com/rio-beach-big-kahuna-beach-chair ) when suddenly the back of the chair collapsed and he fell back to the ground. Upon inspection, one side of the back metal support of the chair had broken in half where it met the arm rest. Luckily the chair was on sand, but if he had been on a hard surface he would have been seriously injured. This was only our fourth use of the chair, and it was only used by my husband who is 60lbs under the advertised weight limit for the chair.

9/5/2019 · Incident, No Injury · RIO BRANDS LLC · Delaware

This consumer purchased two fabric lawn chairs around the end of May or first part of June 2019. August 31st, 2019 Incident Date she was sitting in one of the chairs in her back yard on grass when the seat just gave way. She did not hit the grass/ground only because she caught herself with her arms. The weight limit for the chair is 250 pounds and the caller's weight is 170.pounds. She is not using the second chair and she has removed it from her back yard and placed both chairs in her basement. Not a webbed chair, it is a fabric chair. There are no injuries being reported She contacted the retailer's corporate headquarters August 31st, 2019 and their representative provided her with the manufacturer's contact phone number. She called the manufacturer's contact number, she left a message but she has not as of September 5th, 2019 received a return call.

9/4/2025 · Injury, Seen by Medical Professional · GCI Outdoor, Inc · Montana

We had a very chaotic incident last night when our dog, [REDACTED] got his paw stuck in the front opening at the bottom of the frame of our GCI rocker style lawn chair while I was rocked back. My first instinct was to get out of the chair which constricted that area further and pinched it even more, causing him to be stuck. He was yelping and crying like I have never heard.All three of us were trying to get his paw out. In pain and a panic, he bit my husband several times on both hands.

9/3/2022 · Injury, First Aid Received by Non-Medical Professional · Costco Wholesale · California

I've bought 5 or 6 of the gray foldable chairs from costco, and I have some complaints about them. First off, the backing fell off VERY EASILY in less than a year ON EACH CHAIR. And when it begins to detach, the backing where it attaches has VERY SHARP EDGES. My kids have gotten cut a number of times handling the backs of those chairs. Plus, even when the backing of the chair fully falls off, it leaves one or two VERY SHARP shreds of metal, to which people can ALSO get cut just by handling them. They need to recall these and make stronger products.

9/2/2022 · Injury, First Aid Received by Non-Medical Professional · ShelterLogic, LLC · Florida

I received a Tommy Bahama beach chair see below link. The arms that support the chair fell off and fell apart causing me to backwards and falling to the ground. This chair is dangerous https://www.tommybahama.com/en/Highboy-Chair-with-Shade/p/SH481147-220

9/19/2020 · Injury, Seen by Medical Professional · JAKKS Pacific, Inc. · Texas

Was walking and tripped over the toddler camping chair when it impalled my leg.

Showing 8 of 117 reports.

Product Recalls

Search for active and past recalls related to beach chairs or folding chairs on the CPSC website.

Frequently Asked Questions

How dangerous are beach chairs or folding chairs?

Based on 20 years of CPSC data, beach chairs or folding chairs have a danger score of 37/100 (low risk). An estimated 8,032 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.

What are the most common injuries from beach chairs or folding chairs?

The most common injury is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 15,230 injuries over 20 years.

Are injuries from beach chairs or folding chairs increasing or decreasing?

Down 10% over 5 years.

Who is most at risk for beach chairs or folding chairs injuries?

The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 32,255 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.

What happens when someone is injured by beach chairs or folding chairs?

Of all ER visits involving beach chairs or folding chairs, approximately 5.2% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (94.8%) are treated and released from the emergency department.

How can I report a safety problem with beach chairs or folding chairs?

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.

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 0-4 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.