Televisions
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 Structures & Construction Materials · CPSC Code 572
Down 36% over 5 years
The verdict
Televisions carry a danger score of 40/100 (moderate risk), driven by roughly 42,509 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 36% over the last five years.
- 40/100
- danger score (moderate risk)
- 42,509
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 6.8%
- end in hospital admission
- 25-34
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 572 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 40/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for televisions - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume42,509 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)6.8%
- Fatality rate0.04%
- 5-year trend-36%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Televisions (CPSC product code 572, in the Home Structures & Construction Materials category) generate an estimated 42,509 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 850,174 ER-treated injuries across the 20-year span from 2005 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 40/100 for this category (moderate risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are declining by about 36% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2009 (68,486 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2023 (20,254 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for televisions is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 77,194 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by strain, sprain to the lower trunk (73,964 cases). The 25-34 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 140,895 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 6.8% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer, and a small fraction (0.04%) result in fatality.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 536 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how televisions 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 | 80,585 | 55,864 | |
| 5-14 | 51,991 | 36,957 | |
| 15-24 | 68,170 | 45,784 | |
| 25-34 | 80,515 | 60,365 | |
| 35-44 | 60,606 | 45,645 | |
| 45-54 | 52,687 | 39,534 | |
| 55-64 | 32,704 | 29,082 | |
| 65-74 | 21,144 | 24,837 | |
| 75+ | 24,486 | 39,082 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Lower Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Foot | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Lower Trunk | Other | |
| Face | Laceration | |
| Upper Trunk | Other | |
| Head | Laceration | |
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Hand | Laceration | |
| Hand | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Head | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Shoulder | Strain, Sprain | |
| Upper Trunk | Strain, Sprain | |
| Upper Trunk | Contusions, Abr. |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
7 YOF HIT IN HEAD WITH TELEVISION REMOTE THAT BROTHER THREW AT HER DX FACIAL LACERATION
19 YOM PUNCHED A TV. DX HAND CONTUSION
20 YOM STATES THAT HE SMASHED HIS RIGHT MIDDLE AND 4TH FINGERS ON A HEAVY VIDEO PANEL 2 WEEKS AGO. DX: CRUSH INJURY TO FINGER, SUBUNGUAL HEMATOMA OF DIGIT OF HAND.
49YOM TRIED TO PICK UP LARGE FLAT SCREEN TV AND FELT POP IN ELBOW DX:STRAINED ELBOW
68 YOM TRIPPED OVER HIS TV THAT WAS ON THE FLOOR THIS MORNING AND FELL ONTO HIS RIGHT HAND, RIGHT HIP. MAY HAVE STRUCK HIS HEAD. IS C/O A HEADACHE. +SWELLING AND ABRASIONS TO RIGHT WRIST AND HAND. DX WRIST PAIN
53 YOM WAS LIFTING A HEAVY TELEVISION AND FELT A POP IN HIS LEFT ELBOW. DX: MEDIAL EPICONDYLITIS RIGHT ELBOW
27YOM PRESENTS WITH HAND LACERATION AND PSYCHIATRIC EVALUATION S/P PT PUNCHED THE TV OUT OF FRUSTRATION A FEW DAYS AGO. DX: HAND LACERATION AND SCHIZOAFFECTIVE DISORDER
89YOM WAS TRYING TO MOVE A LARGE FLAT SCREEN TV AT HOME WHEN HE SLIPPED AND FELL LANDING ONTO HIS BUTTOCKS DX: CONTUSION BUTTOCKS
23 MOF PULLED TV DOWN ONTO SELF DX HEAD INJURY
32 YOM C/O LOW BACK PAIN AFTER MOVING TV DX LOW BACK PAIN
37YOM WITH KICKING HIS TV AT HOME WITH PAIN TO FOOT DX: CLOSED FX OF LEFT FOOT
9YOF WITH FALL AGAINST TV DX; CONTUSION TO FACE
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
Possible fire hazard. I purchased a Westinghouse Roku television February 2021. Turned my TV on yesterday and the screen had nothing but vertical and horizontal lines. Then I noticed in the lower left corner a there was a small mark that looks like it melted. On the screen and the frame.
Ever since I got my Vizio 42 Inch Smart TV Model number E420i-B0 S/N LAQAPTAQ 0801718 I fell in love with it instantly and so we used books to keep it from tipping over because it lightly swayed. Which was at the time a minor annoyance in comparison to the quality of the television. Unfortunately there came a day when we needed the books, so we remove them and no longer noticed the light swaying. Figuring the problem solved itself, we left it unsupported. One day while were watching tv it just tipped over from where it was on the dresser about 4 feet high landing on a portable fan smashing the center of the television screen. Regretably my boyfriend tried catching he tv set was subsequently smack in the eye causing light bruising underneath the eye. Usually, I have my grandchildren in my home and am appalled imaging that it could been one of them standing there in direct line of where the television fell instead of the portable fan. As I search online to replace the damaged screen I noticed this television was recalled for this same exact reason but I was never given a notice of recall nor was I aware that it was recalled. I've had this television for number of years. The company in my opinion didn't do enough to warn or give notice to consumers about the recall notice so that situations like this or God forbid worse can be prevented.
Television broke away from stand and was damaged.
(08/25/2014) the consumer stated that he and his wife were outside in the yard. All of a sudden he heard a loud crash. His wife came in the house and discovered the television on the living floor. The screen was not shattered but inside were cracked. The television was broken off of the crystal base which is 2 1/2" x 2 1/2 " x 8". (08/25/2014) The consumer contacted the company and explained the the incident. He was advised that this has happened before. The consumer was referred to Executive Customer Relations. He was given a ticket #[REDACTED]. (08/26/2014)The consumer contacted the company again and was advised by [REDACTED] that his warranty had expired and was offered an extended warranty. He was advised that they would have to send one out to assess the damage to the television within 48 hours. He was given another reference number-[REDACTED]. No one came out (08/28/2014) The consumer stated that his wife called the company at 12:25pm PT to find out why no one was out to asses the damage. She was advised that they had up until midnight ET to send someone out. (08/29/2014) The consumer called again and was referred to USSI. When he called this company he was advised that they did not have technicians on the island of [REDACTED]. The consumer was advised that he would have to get a technician. (09/02/2014) The consumer called Sam sung and [REDACTED] advised of what USSI told him. The consumer was advised that he need to send his receipt to Sam sung which he faxed. The consumer was offered a cash buy back. (09/06/2014) The consumer called back and spoke to [REDACTED]. He was advised that he would have to get someone to repair the televison at his expense. He advised her of what was told to him and was told that he received misinformation. The consumer stated that this 60 lbs can potentially tip over and kill someone. Updated from 9/30 submitter consent (wgm): I now have additional information that is related to this report. One we
Sony rear projection TV model number kf-60we610 was recalled and i never found out until last weekend. Recall expired a few months ago. This television repeatly had the projection bulb blow out, twice smoke came from the unit as a result. Call Sony, they asked me to have it checked out at my expense and to unplug the TV right away. Which I have done.
I brought a Apex HDTV LCD, 46', model LD4688, on Black Friday of 2010. On the afternoon of September 4, 2013, I came home to find the television fallen to the floor along with the entertainment system that it was on. The plastic support that connected the television tot the base had broken, and the weight of the television with all the cables connected to it, brought down the entertainment system. The screen of the television is cracked, the entertainment center and a couple of the HD cables were damaged. If someone had been close to the television during the incident, they probably would have been injured.
Sony Television Model KF-WE50610 case began to melt due to excessive heat from the LCD Lamp. I believe this poses a significant Fire hazzard. Serious damage was done to the lamp access cover from the melting.
Lower right corner of the television melted and burned through the screen.
Showing 8 of 536 reports.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to televisions on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are televisions?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, televisions have a danger score of 40/100 (moderate risk). An estimated 42,509 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from televisions?
The most common injury is internal injury to the head, accounting for approximately 77,194 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from televisions increasing or decreasing?
Down 36% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for televisions injuries?
The 25-34 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 140,895 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by televisions?
Of all ER visits involving televisions, approximately 6.8% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (93.2%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with televisions?
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 Structures & Construction Materials
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 40/100 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 25-34 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.
