Safes
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 Heating & Cooling Equipment · CPSC Code 709
Stable over 5 years
The verdict
Safes carry a danger score of 34/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 2,280 ER-treated injuries a year that are roughly flat over the last five years.
- 34/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 2,280
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 4.0%
- end in hospital admission
- 35-44
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 709 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 34/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for safes - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume2,280 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)4.0%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend-10%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Safes (CPSC product code 709, in the Home Heating & Cooling Equipment category) generate an estimated 2,280 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 45,596 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 34/100 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 2017 (3,358 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2005 (983 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for safes is fracture to the finger, accounting for approximately 3,471 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by strain, sprain to the lower trunk (3,076 cases). The 35-44 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 8,147 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 4.0% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 39 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how safes 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 | 2,737 | 1,341 | |
| 5-14 | 981 | 724 | |
| 15-24 | 3,774 | 2,119 | |
| 25-34 | 5,047 | 2,696 | |
| 35-44 | 5,100 | 3,047 | |
| 45-54 | 4,861 | 2,201 | |
| 55-64 | 3,263 | 1,612 | |
| 65-74 | 1,727 | 1,566 | |
| 75+ | 1,500 | 1,303 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Finger | Fracture | |
| Lower Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Foot | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Lower Trunk | Other | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Hand | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Finger | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Head | Laceration | |
| Toe | Fracture | |
| Upper Trunk | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Upper Trunk | Other | |
| Foot | Fracture | |
| Head | Contusions, Abr. |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
59YOF WITH RIGHT FOOT PAIN. WAS WALKING DOWN A DARK HALL WHEN SHE ACCIDENTALLY KICKED A METAL SAFE ON THE FLOOR. HAS HAD RIGHT 4TH TOE PAIN SINCE. DX: FRACTURE LESSER TOE PROXIMAL PHALANX DISPLACED CLOSED INITIAL RIGHT
44YOF DROPPED A SAFE ON FINGERDX FINGER AVULSION
16YOF C/O LEFT KNEE PAIN AND SWELLING, AFTER SHE WAS MOVING A SAFE AT HOME. DX: LEFT KNEE PAIN
62YOF STATES DROPPED A SAFE AND THE KEY TO THE SAFE CUT LEFT TOE DX FOOT LACERATION
31 YOM C/O LOW BACK PAIN AFTER MOVING SAFE FELL BACKWARDS ONTO FLOOR DX CONTUSION UPPER BACK
19YOM PT HAD ARGUMENT WITH SIGNIFICATN OTHER & STRUCK SELF IN THE HEAD WITH A SAFE DX; LAC OF FOREHEAD
49 YOF SLAMMED THUMB IN A DOOR OF A SAFE EARLIER TODAY. DX: LACERATION OF RIGHT THUMB, OPEN DISPLACED FRACTURE RIGHT THUMB.
68 YOM AT HOME CARRYING A SAFE, LOST HIS BALANCE AND FELL HITTING HIS HEAD/FOREHEAD WITH INJURY TO NECK +SMALL LAC TO FOREHEAD. C/O WEAKNESS IN ARMS AND LEGS DX CENTRAL CORD SYNDROME
42YOF WITH DROPPING A SAFE ON TOE DX; FRACTURED TOE
4 YOM KICKED SAFE BAREFOOT DX TOE INJURY
25 YOF C/O THUMB PAIN AFTER SHUTTING SAFE DOOR ON IT DX CONTUSION THUMB
59YOM, DEVELOPED INTERMITTENT LOW BACK PAIN 4 MONTHS AGO WHILE LIFTING SOMETHING HEAVY IMPROVED AFTER A VISIT TO THE CHIROPRACTOR AND THREE DAYS AGO WAS PULLING A SAFE WHEN SYMPTOMS WORSENED AND NOW WITH SEVERE PAIN TO THE LEFT BUTTOCK INTO LEFT LEG DX: SCIATICA LEFT SIDE; LUMBAR DISC HERNIATION WITH RADICULOPATHY [L4/L5]
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
AmazonBasics Mounted Firearm Safety Device With Biometric Fingerprint Lock Sold by: Amazon.com Services, Inc This item can easily be unlocked by a child/teen using only a ruler. This is extremely unsafe. There should be some type of lip around the button to prevent accessing the interior of the safe so easily. See video showing this safe can easily be opened in less than 10 seconds by a child with a ruler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-lE4Tz2I_Y&t=13s
My four year old came to me today to notify me my gun safe was open! I count on this safe to be in working condition to protect my family and my guns. The safe will not lock. We have not had trouble with it before but after looking it up we have found others have the same problem. I have tried everything, replacing batteries, using the key. It will not lock.
5 year old child was able to use his fingerprint to open the Stack-On PS-15-10-B bio-metric gun safe, retrieve a loaded gun from inside the safe and accidentally shoot himself in the hand. The fingerprints "saved" in the bio-metric unit was the mother and father of the 5 year old. There are several online reviews of this specific safe which report unauthorized fingerprints have been used to open the safe.
I bought a Cacagoo Biometric Gun Safe & it will open with any finger print
I was working at my desk and my 4 year brought me my gun. The product was the Cacagoo finger print lock box.
Barometric finger print scanner failed to work repeatedly. The buttons to open or have also failed to open the safe also do not work consistently.
Just four days after receiving this brand new safe from Walmart, I went to open it with the code I had set and the locking mechanism wouldn't budge. I had entered the correct code, as confirmed by flashing green lights and a faint buzz of the servo motor, but still the safe stayed fully closed. So, I grabbed the backup keys for the electronic safe, put it in the keyway and turned. No luck. The locking mechanism was completely jammed and both keys were only able to turn a quarter of a turn before being met with considerable force. No amount of jiggling, pounding, or pushing while turning the key was effective. Eventually, I had to purchase tools to force the safe open to get access to my passport, handgun, social security card, cash, and best-man gift from my brother (a beautiful wristwatch). All the banging and force required to open the safe had scratched up the watch and gun. In addition, the manufacturing company was unresponsive to calls and emails, despite offering a 3 year warranty on the safe. They finally responded to a support email 5 days after forcing the safe open, and 8 days after the request the same day the safe first sealed itself closed.
I just read an article by Marc Weber Tobias detailing how the Stack-On safes can be opened with a paper clip (search for his name and "thesidebar" and/or "Security Labs" and/or "Forbes"). So I tried it myself on the Stack-On PS-514 I have. I have a short video if you want and I posted it on Amazon under "DANGER !!! Easy to pick !!". I've never cracked a safe in my life and I did it on the second try. The video is my 5th time opening it with a paper clip. I showed my wife how to do it and she got it open on the first try. These are sold as gun safes. The California DOJ has approved them. A child can get into them, get a gun and kill or injure themselves or another person (this has actually happened).
Showing 8 of 39 reports.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to safes on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are safes?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, safes have a danger score of 34/100 (low risk). An estimated 2,280 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from safes?
The most common injury is fracture to the finger, accounting for approximately 3,471 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from safes increasing or decreasing?
Stable over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for safes injuries?
The 35-44 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 8,147 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by safes?
Of all ER visits involving safes, approximately 4.0% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (96.0%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with safes?
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 Heating & Cooling Equipment
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 34/100 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.
