Incinerators
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.
Laundry & Household Appliances · CPSC Code 139
Up 22% over 5 years
The verdict
Incinerators carry a danger score of 25/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 79 ER-treated injuries a year that are rising by about 22% over the last five years.
- 25/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 79
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 0.0%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 139 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 25/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for incinerators - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume79 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)0.0%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend+22%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Incinerators (CPSC product code 139, in the Laundry & Household Appliances category) generate an estimated 79 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 1,106 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 25/100 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 22% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2020 (243 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2016 (16 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for incinerators is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 221 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by contusions, abr. to the finger (202 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 214 cases over the NEISS window, and females 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 incinerators 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 | 62 | 152 | |
| 5-14 | 54 | 0 | |
| 15-24 | 93 | 0 | |
| 25-34 | 165 | 16 | |
| 35-44 | 78 | 0 | |
| 45-54 | 72 | 127 | |
| 55-64 | 60 | 83 | |
| 65-74 | 77 | 67 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Finger | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Hand | Laceration | |
| Finger | Fracture | |
| All Parts Body | Poisoning | |
| Lower Trunk | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Foot | Strain, Sprain | |
| Upper Trunk | Other | |
| Elbow | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Hand | Burns, Thermal | |
| Finger | Crushing | |
| Head | Internal Injury |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
3YOF PRESENTS WITH A FACIAL LACERATION SUSTAINED FROM METAL INCINERATOR IN THE HOME.1 CM LAC TO MID CHEEK DX:FACIAL LACERATION
50 YOM USING INCINERATOR IN HOUSE AND IT LIT INSULATION ON FIRE,GRABBED INSULATION TO OPUT FIRE OUT AND BURNED BILATERAL HANDS DX: BILATERAL HAND BURNS- UNKNOWN IF FIRE DEPT ATTENDED
@40YOM MVC, RESTRAINED DRIVER BUT A PARKED FLATBED TRUCK AT 30-35MPH, PD INVOLVEMENT. C/O RIGHT HIP, ABDOMINAL AND CHEST WALL PAIN. ADMITS TO METH USE, LAB WORK NOT DONE. DX HIPE CONTUSION
27YOM WAS THROWING SOMETHING INTO AN INCINERATOR. HE SCRAPED THE DORSAL SIDE OF HIS R HAND AGAINST METAL THAT WAS RUSTY. DX: LACERATION TO FINGER.
27YOM C/O HEARING VOICES AND VISUAL HALLUCINATIONS SEEING PEOPLE WATCHING HIM STATES LAST METHAMPHETAMINE USE 7 DAYS AGO DX: DRUG IND PSYCHOSIS VS NEW ONSET PSYCHIATRIC PROBLEM
29YOM REPORTS WITH FINGER LACERATION WHEN HE WAS TRYING TO DISPOSE SOME GARBAGE IN THE IN THE INCINERATOR. DX FINGER LACERATION.
62YOF WAS ABUSING MARIJUANA AND ETOH AND FELL ONTO THE SIDEWALK ONTO HEAD DX: CLOSED HEAD INJURY CONTUSION FACE ETOH INTOXICATION NO BAC DONE
A 10YOM CAUGHT FINGER IN INCINERATOR AT HOME, CRUSH INJ TO FINGER
67 YO F C/O RT 5TH FINGER PAIN WAS THROWING OUT TRASH ACCIDENTALLY SLAMMED INCINDERATOR ON HAND DX RT HAND LAC
58 YO F C/O CUT TO RT THUMB WAS PUTTING GARBAGE INTO INCINERATOR THIS AM GOT CUT DX LAC
21YM FD PASSEDOUT IN A CAR IN FRONT OF HIS MOTHER'S HOUSE S/P ADMITS TODRINKING ETOH IN ADD TO USING COCAINE&HEROIN>>POLYSUBS ABUSE
24 YOM DX FINGER CONTUSION - S/P PT'S FINGER CAUGHT IN GARBAGEINCINERATOR.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to incinerators on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are incinerators?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, incinerators have a danger score of 25/100 (low risk). An estimated 79 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from incinerators?
The most common injury is laceration to the finger, accounting for approximately 221 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from incinerators increasing or decreasing?
Up 22% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for incinerators injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 214 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by incinerators?
Of all ER visits involving incinerators, 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 incinerators?
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 Laundry & Household Appliances
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 25/100 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.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
