CPSC NEISS · code 3216

Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment)

Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment): danger rank #213 of 838 is not ER-volume rank #62 of 838 (41,390 estimated ER visits a year; declining by about 20% over the last five years).

Sports Protective Equipment & Gear CPSC NEISS through 2024

Danger score versus ER volume

Danger score versus ER volume

According to CPSC NEISS 2005-2024, Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) ranks #213 of 838 by danger score (39/100) at ER-volume #62 of 838 (41,390/yr). They are not the same ranking.

#213
danger rank of 838
#62
ER-volume rank of 838
39/100
danger score
41,390/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 (39/100) across 838 scored CPSC product categories

39 Around the middle lower than 25% 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 · 2024

Composite verdict

Composite Safety Score: 53/100

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.

C
Dimension Value National percentile Weight applied Source
Injury severity (hospitalization + fatality blend) 3 29th 35% CPSC NEISS 20-year severity index
Annual ER injury volume 41,390 93rd 30% CPSC NEISS estimated annual ER-treated injuries
5-year injury trend -20% 35th 15% CPSC NEISS 5-year % change in ER-treated injuries
Consumer incident reports 11 50th 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 827,819 estimated ER injuries land on the body

Body-part shares from the same CPSC NEISS injury_types extract for product code 3216. Segments sum to 827,819 - 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 Sports Protective Equipment & Gear 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.

Sports Protective Equipment & Gear danger scores

1. All Terrain Vehicles (# O…54/1002. Mopeds Or Power-assisted …54/1003. Exercise (activity Or App…48/1004. Snow Skiing (activity, Ap…47/1005. All Terrain Vehicles (fou…46/1006. Exercise Equipment45/1007. Tennis (activity, Apparel…44/1008. Roller Skating (activity,…39/100
Higher score = higher composite danger in this group. Peer set is other scored products sharing the same CPSC group.
0/100100/10039/100
PlainSafety danger score · Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment)

Source: CPSC NEISS danger-score model As of 2024

How this 39/100 score is built

The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) - no opinion, no editorializing:

  • Injury volume 41,390 ER visits/yr Very high volume
  • Severity (hospitalization rate) 3.4% Below median admission rate
  • Fatality rate 0.00% No recorded fatalities
  • 5-year trend-20%

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 20-year NEISS window from 2005 to 2024, injury counts for roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) are declining by about 20% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2014 (54,796 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2020 (23,517 estimated visits). The single most common ER diagnosis is fracture to the wrist, accounting for approximately 109,662 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by fracture to the lower arm (82,710 cases). The 5-14 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 438,036 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 3.4% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.

Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 11 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) 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)

20K30K40K50K60K 20052008201120142017202020232024 31K
Estimated annual emergency-room visits for Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment), CPSC NEISS

Source: CPSC NEISS national injury estimates As of 2024

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

Who Gets Injured?

Age Group Male Female Total
0-4 3,069 4,737 7,806
5-14 152,810 285,158 438,036
15-24 35,611 69,876 105,591
25-34 19,109 73,579 92,688
35-44 19,680 68,893 88,573
45-54 12,920 45,402 58,322
55-64 7,217 20,224 27,441
65-74 2,937 4,680 7,617
75+ 748 977 1,725

Most Common Injuries

Body Part Diagnosis Est. Injuries
Wrist Fracture 109,662
Lower Arm Fracture 82,710
Wrist Strain, Sprain 72,505
Ankle Strain, Sprain 56,946
Ankle Fracture 48,413
Lower Leg Fracture 36,478
Head Internal Injury 27,405
Elbow Fracture 24,583
Lower Trunk Contusions, Abr. 22,563
Elbow Contusions, Abr. 21,096
Knee Contusions, Abr. 19,477
Knee Strain, Sprain 19,336
Wrist Other 16,872
Head Concussion 14,149
Face Laceration 12,551

Severity Breakdown

Treated/examined And Released 95.6% (791,192)
Treated And Admitted/hospitalized 2.7% (22,320)
Left Without Being Seen 0.8% (6,715)
Treated And Transferred 0.6% (5,268)
Held For Observation 0.3% (2,309)
Unknown, Not Stated 0.0% (15)

ER Visit Narratives

Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.

Age 13 · Female · Wrist · Strain, Sprain · 2024

13YOF PRESENTS AFTER ROLLER SKATING DOWNHILL WITH NO PROTECTIVE GEAR WHEN SHE FELL AND LANDED ON HER LEFT WRIST WITH ASSOCIATED PAIN AND SWELLING, DX: SPRAIN AND STRAIN OF WRIST

Age 6 · Female · Upper Trunk · Strain, Sprain · 2024

6 YOF C/O RIB PAIN AFTER FALL ROLLERSKATING DX INTERCOSTAL MUSCLE STRAIN

Age 12 · Female · Lower Arm · Fracture · 2024

12YOF, FELL ON ARM AT SKATING RINK, C/O PAIN LEFT ARM DX: LEFT RADIAL FRACTURE

Age 22 · Female · Knee · Strain, Sprain · 2024

22 YOF ROLLER SKATING AND TWISTED KNEE. DX SPRAIN

Age 7 · Male · Head · Internal Injury · 2024

7YOM CHILD WAS AT THE ROLLER RINK WHEN HE FELL AND HITTING HIS HEAD DX: INJURY OF HEAD, TRAUMATIC HEMATOMA OF FOREHEAD

Age 14 · Female · Hand · Strain, Sprain · 2024

14 YOF WAS ROLLER SKATING AND FELL, GRABBED ON TO A TABLE AND HURT HAND. DX SPRAIN

Age 10 · Female · Wrist · Fracture · 2024

10 YOF FELL WHILE ROLLERSKATING HURT WRIST DX WRIST FX CLOSED

Age 33 · Female · Lower Leg · Fracture · 2024

33YOF WAS AT ROLLER DERBY PRACTICE WHEN SHE PIVOTED AND FELT SUDDEN ONSET OF PAIN IN HER LEFT LEG AND FELL TO THE GROUND. DX: ANKLE SPRAIN, TIBIA FRACTURE

Age 15 · Female · Ankle · Fracture · 2024

15YOF WAS ROLLER SKATING AND FELL DX: FRACTURED LEFT ANKLE

Age 24 · Female · Ankle · Fracture · 2024

24YOF INJURED ANKLE WHEN SHE FELL ROLLER SKATING. DX: LT ANKLE FX

Age 16 · Female · Upper Arm · Strain, Sprain · 2024

16YOF, 4 DAYS AGO FELL WHILE ROLLERSKATING AND SINCE WITH ARM AND WRIST PAIN, DX: SPRAIN OF RIGHT UPPER ARM; SPRAIN OF RIGHT WRIST

Age 15 · Female · Ankle · Fracture · 2024

15YOF, ROLLER SKATING FOR FIRST TIME AND FELL TWISTING ANKLE DX: CLOSED TRIMALLEOLAR FRACTURE OF LEFT ANKLE

Consumer Incident Reports

Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.

7/3/2025 · No Incident, No Injury · Bont Skates · Massachusetts

Bont rollerskates using the prodigy plate have been well known and documented for trucks popping in and out during skating. The black tracer plates are documented for trucks snapping clean off. If you contact bont, they will send you replacement parts, but many people do not know the risk of these products failing. Bont does know but has not issued a recall.

6/12/2012 · Injury, First Aid Received by Non-Medical Professional · BRAVO SPORTS · Illinois

Child was wearing roller skates, quad wheel style, and the clasps / fasteners on each skate became unfastened causing the skate to loosen while on the child's foot. The child has fallen while skating and her foot has come out of the skate due to the fasteners coming undone. The fasteners no longer remain fastened despite snapping them in place and hearing the "click" sound to indicate that they are locked. The skates manufacturer's date code was 3/25/11 and they were purchased in December 2011. The skates were worn for approximately 4 months beginning in March 2012. The skates were bought at Toy R Us and are manufactured / distributed by Bravo Sports. They are the Disney Princess Adjustable Quad Skates.

4/24/2014 · Injury, No First Aid or Medical Attention Received · Toy's R Us · Massachusetts

My daughter used roller skate for 10 minutes. and plastic part near ankle, cut both side of the ankle skin (1.5 inches each ) and made them bleeding. I found out boots inside the plastic parts are smaller than outside supporting plastic parts. Also the plastic parts are sharp and rough which easily cut skin.

4/22/2025 · No Incident, No Injury · JAKKS Pacific, Inc. · Illinois

Jakks Paw Patrol Roller Skates, the strap comes undone while wearing skates possing fall hazard to toddlers. It doesn't stay on. The clip falls or loosen

3/8/2014 · Injury, Emergency Department Treatment Received · TECNICA GROUP USA CORPORATION · United States

I purchased the incline skates, Rollerblade Tempest. I wore them approximately 4 times and had 2 accidents (one involving an ambulance ride to the ER). The first time, the skates felt like the wheels were caught or something and I ran into a parked car, bruising my chin and arm with swelling). The second time was more serious. I was unable to gin control of the skates and fell resulting in a head and shoulder injury. I was taken to the Emergency Room where I received staples in my head to close the gash from my fall. I have owned roller blades since I was about 12. I NEVER had any incidents where I was injured, even minor incidents.

3/23/2017 · Injury, First Aid Received by Non-Medical Professional · JNJ International · Unspecified

My 10 yr old son was [skating] with his [inline skates] that are less than a year old only worn about 10 times. .. and the whole front wheel snapped off. The plastic holding the wheel actually snapped.

2/3/2020 · Injury, First Aid Received by Non-Medical Professional · TECNICA GROUP USA CORPORATION · Florida

Was skating on a paved path in a public park. After about 4 miles of skating the left skate fell apart. The group of 4 wheels separated from the boot causing me to fall. Link to picture of skate: [REDACTED]

12/8/2016 · Injury, No First Aid or Medical Attention Received · Cardiff Sport Technologies LLC · California

I bought a pair of new roller skates on 11/25/2016. I used it 4 times, always in parks and streets along those parks, never went offroad or rough areas. The fourth use was on the tenth day after purchase. I was skating in [REDACTED] park area. The front wheel of the right skate fell off spontaneously and I fell on the ground. I got bruises on my right palm and left knee. Left knee cap area of my pants were ripped apart. Fortunately, there was no body and no car around. Serious injury might happen if a kid/teen fell out of the blue off a street and got hit by a car. The skate was brand new and unmodified by me. I weight 140 lb, well below the recommended max of 190 lb in their reference guide. I would like to report this so that we can figure out if this is a single defective product or there is systematic manufacturing problem or design flaw. Even if this is a single defect, failing on the 4th use on the 10th day is very unsatisfactory.

Showing 8 of 11 reports.

Product Recalls

Search for active and past recalls related to roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) on the CPSC website.

Compare beyond Sports Protective Equipment & Gear

Nationwide peers by danger score, ER volume & hospitalization

Three PlainSafety-derived comparison paths for Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment): cross-group products nearest on danger score (39/100), estimated annual ER visits (41,390/yr), and hospitalization share (3.4%). 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, Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) ranks #213 of 838 scored CPSC product categories by PlainSafety danger score and #62 of 838 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where does roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) rank on danger score versus ER volume?

Among 838 scored CPSC product categories, roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) ranks #213 by PlainSafety danger score (39/100) and #62 by 20-year estimated ER injury volume (41,390/yr). The two rankings come from the same NEISS extract and are not the same order.

What are the most common injuries from roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment)?

The most common injury is fracture to the wrist, accounting for approximately 109,662 injuries over 20 years.

Are injuries from roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) increasing or decreasing?

Down 20% over 5 years.

Who is most at risk for roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment) injuries?

The 5-14 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 438,036 cases recorded over 20 years. Females are more frequently injured in this age group.

What happens when someone is injured by roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment)?

Of all ER visits involving roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment), approximately 3.4% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (96.6%) are treated and released from the emergency department.

How can I report a safety problem with roller skating (activity, apparel or equipment)?

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 Roller Skating (activity, Apparel Or Equipment) is compiled directly from CPSC NEISS and SaferProducts.gov records, current through 2024. 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.