Drills, Not Specified
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 Communication & Entertainment · CPSC Code 847
Stable over 5 years
The verdict
Drills, Not Specified carry a danger score of 37/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 10,930 ER-treated injuries a year that are roughly flat over the last five years.
- 37/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 10,930
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 1.7%
- end in hospital admission
- 35-44
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 847 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 37/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for drills, not specified - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume10,930 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)1.7%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+8%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Drills, Not Specified (CPSC product code 847, in the Home Communication & Entertainment category) generate an estimated 10,930 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 218,602 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 roughly flat over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2024 (14,171 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2018 (7,866 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for drills, not specified is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 40,932 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by puncture to the finger (22,404 cases). The 35-44 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 47,712 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 1.7% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 4 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how drills, not specified 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 | 2,175 | 873 | |
| 5-14 | 3,869 | 1,087 | |
| 15-24 | 24,411 | 2,407 | |
| 25-34 | 40,295 | 4,862 | |
| 35-44 | 42,521 | 5,191 | |
| 45-54 | 35,650 | 4,679 | |
| 55-64 | 22,752 | 2,501 | |
| 65-74 | 15,721 | 1,049 | |
| 75+ | 7,959 | 596 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Finger | Puncture | |
| Hand | Laceration | |
| Hand | Puncture | |
| Eyeball | Foreign Body | |
| Eyeball | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Finger | Fracture | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Hand | Fracture | |
| Finger | Other | |
| Head | Laceration | |
| Finger | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Wrist | Strain, Sprain | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Foot | Puncture |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
59 YOM INJ LT HAND ACCIDENTALLY HIT LT HAND WITH DRILL BIT AT HOME DX PUNCTURE WOUND W/CELLULITIS LT HAND
35YOM PRESENTS TO THE ER WITH A LACERATION. HE STATES HE WAS USING A DRILL BIT THAT BROKE OFF AND ENDED UP PUNCTURING IS LEFT THUMB X-RAY SHOW A FRACTURE. DX: FRACTURE OTHER FINGER PHALANX DISTAL DISPLACED OPEN
40YOM PRESENTS FROM HOME FOR EVAL OF L HAND INJ. HE WAS USING A DRILL, WEARING A GLOVE WHEN THE GLOVE GOT CAUGHT IN THE CHUCK OF THE DRILL & WAS TWISTED AROUND HIS FINGERS,TWISTING MAINLY HIS RING & PINKY FINGERS. THERE WAS PAIN & LAC OF THE FINGERS. ALSO DEFORMITY OF THE RING FINGER.HAS PARESTHESIAS IN HIS DISTAL FINGERTIPS. DX: LEFT HAND FRACTURE;FINGER LACERATIONS
20 YOM CUT HAND WITH A DRILL DX: LAC
29YOF C/O FINGER PROBLEM. GOT FINGER CAUGHT IN CHICKEN FEED AUGER. SWELLING NOTED TO DISTAL INDEX FINGER. DX: DISPLACED FRACTURE OF DISTAL PHALANX OF LEFT INDEX FINGER
49 YOM COMES BY EMS, REPORTS BEING STRUCK BY DRILL HANDLE THAT WAS TURNING INSIDE WALL, C/O LEFT SIDED HEAD/NECK PAIN. DX: CHI
88YOM PRESENTS TO THE ED POST FALL VIA EMS. PATIENT REPORTS HE WAS STANDING, DRILLING A HOLE IN SOMETHING METAL WHEN HE FELT LIKE SOMEONE PUSHED HIM DOWN AND FELL ON HIS RIGHT SIDE. EMS STATES PATIENT FELL POSSIBLY ON A PILE OF MAGAZINES ON THE FLOOR. UNKNOWN LOC. COMPLAINS OF RIGHT HIP PAIN. DX: FALL, CLOSED DISPLACED INTERTROCHANTERIC FRACTURE OF RIGHT FEMUR,
33 YOM ACCIDENTALLY INJURED THUMB WITH DRILL BIT AT HOME EARLIER TODAY. DX: FINGER AVULSION.
58YOM PATIENT STATES HE WAS ICE FISHING WHEN HE LOST A HANDLE ON HIS AUGER DRILL STRIKING HIS HAND CAUSING IMMENSE PAIN DX: CONTUSION OF LEFT HAND
36YOM PATIENT WAS USING A DRILL WHEN THE DRILLBIT BROKE OFF IN HIS HAND, PUNCTURE WOUND IN LEFT THENAR EMINENCE DX: PUNCTURE WOUND
29 YOM WITH LEFT PROXIMAL KNEE LACERATION WHICH HE ENCOUNTERED WHILE WAS WORKING IN HOME CONSTRUCTION YESTERDAY EVENING. HE STATED THAT HE HAD CONSUMED ALCOHOLIC DRINK PRIOR TO WORKING AND ACCIDENTALLY LACERATED PROXIMAL KNEE USING NAIL DRILLING DEVICE. NO BAL. DX KNEE LACERATION
19YOM PATIENT WAS USING A DRILL, IT IS UNKNOWN IF IT WAS A DRILL PRESS OR AN ACTUAL DRILL AS THERE IS SOME BARRIER TO COMMUNICATION, FINGER INJURY DX: OPEN DISPLACED FRACTURE OF DISTAL PHALANX OF RIGHT THUMB, RIGHT THUMB LACERATION
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
Impact gun engages while being maneuvered into position for use. Please keep in mind this tool is very heavy requiring a firm grip just to pick it up. The trigger is located at the grip on the outside of the handle. Making the gun dangerous to just pick up from the floor if it is connected to air supply. The natural method of using this tool is to align the socket on the nut to be removed or installed by twisting the drive anvil with one hand and press the tool into place with the other hand using the rear handle at which time the tool inadvertently engages because of the trigger placement. The location of this trigger could be compared to having the trigger on a shotgun on the rear of the shoulder stock! just getting it in place ready to use and it goes off.
Caller is reporting that the drill bit does not have a warning label. He stated that he was drilling when the drill bit caused the content to become a projectile, fortunately he was not struck by the pieces that was dispersed forcefully. Caller stated that this unit might be a tool that should be for industrial use not residential. The retailer was contacted for information on returning this item. He is concerned that this product is dangerous and should not be on the market.
I was drilling Matel the drill belt and the will cams of from the big screw that hold the will & the belt to spin the bit to drill anything. I open the cover to see the belt and the will jump up, thanks good I moved my hand away...
When installing the propane tank to my Jiffy Pro 4 Gen 2 Ice Auger, the fuel line exploded causing the propane spew out the damaged fuel line. I was outside at the time so the propane leaked to atmosphere and also saturated one of the gloves that I was wearing. I'm guessing this could cause a fire hazard. I'm not sure the affects propane could cause to bare skin, to the eyes or if breathed in.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to drills, not specified on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are drills, not specified?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, drills, not specified have a danger score of 37/100 (low risk). An estimated 10,930 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from drills, not specified?
The most common injury is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 40,932 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from drills, not specified increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for drills, not specified injuries?
The 35-44 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 47,712 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by drills, not specified?
Of all ER visits involving drills, not specified, approximately 1.7% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (98.3%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with drills, not specified?
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 Communication & Entertainment
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 35-44 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.
