CPSC NEISS · code 1528

Diaper Pails

Diaper Pails: danger rank #811 of 838 is not ER-volume rank #790 of 838 (76 estimated ER visits a year; declining by about 25% over the last five years).

Nursery & Baby Products CPSC NEISS through 2023

Danger score versus ER volume

Danger score versus ER volume

According to CPSC NEISS 2006-2023, Diaper Pails ranks #811 of 838 by danger score (22/100) at ER-volume #790 of 838 (76/yr). They are not the same ranking.

#811
danger rank of 838
#790
ER-volume rank of 838
22/100
danger score
76/yr
estimated ER visits (avg)

Danger score combines injury volume, hospitalization, fatality, and five-year trend. ER volume is the average annual NEISS estimate alone. Rank 1 is highest on each list.

Where this category's danger score sits nationally

Danger score (22/100) across 838 scored CPSC product categories

22 Among the lowest lower than 97% of 838 product categories

scored CPSC product categories, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more product categories. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source CPSC NEISS, PlainSafety danger-score model · 2023

Composite verdict

Composite Safety Score: 6/100

One verdict blending 4 independently-sourced dimensions from two separate CPSC systems, each benchmarked against all 838 scored product categories by percentile rather than raw value, so no single huge-volume category can dominate the scale.

A
Dimension Value National percentile Weight applied Source
Injury severity (hospitalization + fatality blend) 0 0th 35% CPSC NEISS 20-year severity index
Annual ER injury volume 76 6th 30% CPSC NEISS estimated annual ER-treated injuries
5-year injury trend -25% 27th 15% CPSC NEISS 5-year % change in ER-treated injuries
Consumer incident reports 0 0th 20% CPSC SaferProducts.gov public incident report count

Methodology: each dimension is ranked against the full population's p10/p25/p50/p75/p90 breakpoints and interpolated to a 0-100 percentile; the composite is the weighted average of available percentiles. See methodology for the full benchmark table.

Where 993 estimated ER injuries land on the body

Body-part shares from the same CPSC NEISS injury_types extract for product code 1528. Segments sum to 993 - a body-map mix, not a danger score or ER-volume rank.

Two danger lenses

Same-group peer scores and this product's dial

The bars compare PlainSafety danger scores inside the Nursery & Baby Products group (same CPSC NEISS extract). The dial is this product's score alone on the Low/Moderate/High bands. Do not read a peer bar as an ER-visit count.

Nursery & Baby Products danger scores

1. Bassinets Or Cradles47/1002. Baby Bathtub Seats Or Rin…41/1003. Baby Baths Or Bathinettes41/1004. Cribs, Nonportable Or Not…40/1005. High Chairs39/1006. Portable Baby Swings (for…38/1007. Portable Cribs38/1008. Diaper Pails22/100
Higher score = higher composite danger in this group. Peer set is other scored products sharing the same CPSC group.
0/100100/10022/100
PlainSafety danger score · Diaper Pails

Source: CPSC NEISS danger-score model As of 2023

How this 22/100 score is built

The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for diaper pails - no opinion, no editorializing:

  • Injury volume 76 ER visits/yr Low volume
  • Severity (hospitalization rate) 0.0% Low admission rate
  • Fatality rate 0.00% No recorded fatalities
  • 5-year trend-25%

Band labels compare this category against the corpus of 838 scored CPSC product categories, see the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.

What the CPSC Data Shows

Across the 18-year NEISS window from 2006 to 2023, injury counts for diaper pails are declining by about 25% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2012 (194 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2016 (5 estimated visits). The single most common ER diagnosis is laceration to the face, accounting for approximately 201 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (190 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 744 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 0.0% 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 diaper pails 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 2023-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.

Annual Injury Estimates (2006–2023)

050100150200250 2006200920112014201720202023 84
Estimated annual emergency-room visits for Diaper Pails, CPSC NEISS

Source: CPSC NEISS national injury estimates As of 2023

Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only

Who Gets Injured?

Age Group Male Female Total
0-4 444 300 744
15-24 0 86 86
25-34 0 77 77
35-44 0 87 87

Most Common Injuries

Body Part Diagnosis Est. Injuries
Face Laceration 201
Head Internal Injury 190
Upper Leg Fracture 87
Elbow Contusions, Abr. 77
Upper Trunk Other 77
Foot Strain, Sprain 70
Mouth Laceration 70
Finger Avulsion 62
Head Contusions, Abr. 62
Lower Trunk Derma/conjunct 33
Face Contusions, Abr. 32
Lower Trunk Strain, Sprain 16
Toe Crushing 6
Finger Other 5
Not Stated/unk Other 5

Severity Breakdown

Treated/examined And Released 100.0% (993)

ER Visit Narratives

Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.

Age 3 · Male · Elbow · Contusions, Abr. · 2023

3yom sitting on a *** at home, fell off landing on rt elbow on the floor. Dx: contusion elbow

Age 4 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2022

4YOM TO ER FOR EVAL OF HEAD INJURY & ONSET VOMITING THIS MORNING AT SCHOOL, PT FELL FORWARD & HIT HEAD ON METAL DIAPER CAN, PER MOM PT HAS HAD 10 EPISODES OF VOMITING SINCE 9AM DX HEAD TRAUMA, VOMITING IN CHILD, NASAL CONGESTION

Age 212 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2020

12 MOM IN DAD'S ARMS AND FELL OUT AND HIT HEAD ON DIAPER GENIE DX: CLOSED HEAD INJ

Age 219 · Female · Finger · Avulsion · 2018

19 MO F CUT HAND ON DIAPER PAIL AT DAYCARE. DX: SKIN AVULSION R FIFTH DIGIT.

Age 209 · Male · Head · Contusions, Abr. · 2018

9 MO M CLIMBED ON TOP OF DIAPER PAIL & FELL 3 FT ONTO ROCK TILE FLOOR. DX: HEAD CONT.

Age 220 · Female · Lower Trunk · Derma/conjunct · 2018

20 MOF WITH RASH TO GROIN THAT IS SPREADING, HAS HAD DIARRHEA, DX: CANDIDIAL DIAPER RASH

Age 210 · Female · Face · Laceration · 2018

10MO F PULLED DIAPER PAIL OFF CHANGING TABLE;DX FOREHEAD LAC

Age 214 · Male · Finger · Other · 2018

14MOM CRYING IN BEDROOM, MOTHER FOUND PT NEAR DIAPER BUCKET, THINKS PT CLOSED LID ON FIFTH RIGHT FINGER, SWELLING/BRUISING; DX FINGER INJURY

Age 208 · Female · Not Stated/unk · Other · 2016

8MOF NO INJURY FELL FROM CHANGING TABLE HITTING PLASTIC DIAPER PAIL

Age 211 · Male · Toe · Crushing · 2014

11MOM DIAPER GENIE CONTAINER FELL ON HIM; DX CRUSH INJURY TOE

Age 40 · Female · Face · Laceration · 2012

40YOF STUMBED BACKWARDS OVER DIAPER PALE FELL STRIKING SIDE OF FACEON AND END TABLE;FACIAL LACERATION

Age 214 · Female · Mouth · Laceration · 2012

14 MONTH FEMALE CLIMBING ON DIAPER PAIL, SLIPPED, HIT MOUTH ON DIAPER PAIL AND SUSTAINED A SUPERFICIAL LACERATION TO MOUTH

Product Recalls

Search for active and past recalls related to diaper pails on the CPSC website.

Compare beyond Nursery & Baby Products

Nationwide peers by danger score, ER volume & hospitalization

Three PlainSafety-derived comparison paths for Diaper Pails: cross-group products nearest on danger score (22/100), estimated annual ER visits (76/yr), and hospitalization share (0.0%). Same-group neighbours stay in Related Products above.

Read with this product

About this data

CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports form the basis of this page. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments.

According to PlainSafety's CPSC NEISS corpus ranking, Diaper Pails ranks #811 of 838 scored CPSC product categories by PlainSafety danger score and #790 of 838 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does diaper pails rank on danger score versus ER volume?

Among 838 scored CPSC product categories, diaper pails ranks #811 by PlainSafety danger score (22/100) and #790 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume (76/yr). The two rankings come from the same NEISS extract and are not the same order.

What are the most common injuries from diaper pails?

The most common injury is laceration to the face, accounting for approximately 201 injuries over 20 years.

Are injuries from diaper pails increasing or decreasing?

Down 25% over 5 years.

Who is most at risk for diaper pails injuries?

The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 744 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.

What happens when someone is injured by diaper pails?

Of all ER visits involving diaper pails, approximately 0.0% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (100.0%) are treated and released from the emergency department.

How can I report a safety problem with diaper pails?

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.

Data on Diaper Pails is compiled directly from CPSC NEISS and SaferProducts.gov records, current through 2023. See our methodology for details.

Disclaimer: This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.

PlainSafety is rendered directly from U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recall and incident records, no number is typed in by an editor. Product recall timelines and hazard labels are drawn from CPSC recall records for this product. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.