Toy Vehicles (excluding Riding Toys)
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.
Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment · CPSC Code 5021
Down 19% over 5 years
The verdict
Toy Vehicles (excluding Riding Toys) carry a danger score of 35/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 12,047 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 19% over the last five years.
- 35/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 12,047
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 2.5%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 5021 - last data year 2024.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 35/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume12,047 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)2.5%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend-19%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Toy Vehicles (excluding Riding Toys) (CPSC product code 5021, in the Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment category) generate an estimated 12,047 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 180,708 ER-treated injuries across the 15-year span from 2010 to 2024. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 35/100 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 declining by about 19% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2010 (15,044 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2024 (9,124 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) is laceration to the face, accounting for approximately 27,513 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (13,465 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 88,957 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 2.5% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 297 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 20 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) 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 (2010–2024)
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 | 72,282 | 16,675 | |
| 5-14 | 25,127 | 10,174 | |
| 15-24 | 4,966 | 3,916 | |
| 25-34 | 7,053 | 7,584 | |
| 35-44 | 5,619 | 4,198 | |
| 45-54 | 4,012 | 3,295 | |
| 55-64 | 4,166 | 1,780 | |
| 65-74 | 4,349 | 1,734 | |
| 75+ | 3,073 | 683 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Face | Laceration | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Finger | Laceration | |
| Mouth | Laceration | |
| Face | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Head | Laceration | |
| Hand | Laceration | |
| Internal | Ingestion | |
| Eyeball | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Face | Foreign Body | |
| Lower Arm | Laceration | |
| Head | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Foot | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Ankle | Strain, Sprain | |
| Foot | Laceration |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
16YOM HAS 4.5 CM LACERATION OT RIGHT LOWER LEG HE SUSTAINED WHEN AN RC CAR RAN INTO HIM. DX: LACERATION
8 YOM HIT IN HEAD W/TOY CAR AT DAYCARE DX; HEAD LAC
62YOF WAS WALKING WHEN HER GRANDCHILD WAS PLAYING WITH ELECTRIC TOY REMOTE CONTROL CAR AND RAN INTO HER LOWER LEG CAUSING HER TO FALL ONTO HER OUTSTRETCHED LEFT ARM DX:FRACTURED LEFT TIBIA, FRACTURED LEFT HUMEROUS
5 YOM AT DAYCARE WAS STRUCK IN FOREHEAD WITH TOY FIRETRUCK DX FOREHEAD LACERATION
4YOM WAS HIT ON THE LEFT FOOT WITH A REMOTE CONTROL CAR DX: CONTUSION LEFT FOOT
2 YOM WAS PUSHING AROUND A TOY CAR AT HOME WHEN HE FELL HITTING CHIN ON A WOODEN FLOOR, DX; CHIN LACERATION
32YOM WAS STRUCK IN THE RIGHT ANKLE BUY A VERY HEAVY REMOTE CONTROL CAR DX: CONTUSION RIGHT ANKLE, FRACTURED RIGHT FOOT
20MOM WAS PLAYING WITH SIBLING AND ACCIDENTALLY STRUCK SELF IN THE LEFT EYE WITH A TOY CAR DX: CORNEAL ABRASION
15MOM, 2 YEARS SISTER TOLD MOM THAT THE PATIENT SWALLOWED A PLASTIC TOY CAR, MOM HELD HIM UPSIDE DOWN AND GAVE ABDOMINA THRUST WHICH DIDN'T HELP, MOM REPORTS WAS HAVING DIFFICULTY BREATHING, DX: FOREIGN BODY INGESTION
13MOF WAS PLAYING WITH A TOY CAR AND FELL ONTO FACE DX: LIP LACERATION
5YOM, ACCIDENTALLY SWALLOWED A WHEEL OF A TOY CAR, CIRCULAR OBJECT WITH 1 CENTIMETER IN DIAMETER, HAS NO PROBLEM BREATHING OR SWALLOWING, DX: FOREIGN BODY ALIMANTARY TRACT
11MOM WAS PUSHING A TOY CAR WHEN HE FELL AND HIT HEAD AGAINST A CHAIR. DX: MINOR HEAD INJURY; FOREHEAD ABRASION.
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
(09/09/2014) The consumer gave the toy to her child. She saw that something was in his mouth. The consumer took the object out of his mouth and inspected the toy. She saw that the piece came the base of the back wheel. The consumer stated that the the object was about 1/4 of and inch long. The consumer stated that the front right of the toy is also peeling. No injuries.
I would like to inform you of product safety concern. We purchased Siddeley (the spy plane from the Cars 2 movie) from the Disney Store in the Rockvale Square Outlets in Lancaster, PA on Friday, August 26, 2011. The following day, we unpackaged it and gave it to our 3 yr old son (soon to be four in November) to play with. He is usually gentle with his toys, but every now and then, something may break or wheels may bend (like on a Matchbox Monster Truck because he presses down on it and drives it all over the place). We were very disappointed when only a few minutes after giving it to him, the wheels of Siddeley broke off. Our son is smart enough to know not to put something in his mouth. He exclaimed his disappointment and asked his father to fix it. My husband glued the wheels back on and allowed my son to play with it the following day (allowing the glue to dry for 24 hrs). A different set of wheels broke off, only to get glued. I just saw this plane (today is Thursday, September 08, 2011) on my counter with broken wheels laying next to it. The body of the plane is die cast and is very sturdy. It is alarming to us that these wheels continually break off. I really hope something can be done to correct this situation. I will include my receipt information and my contact information at the bottom of this email. http://www.disneystore.com/vehicles-rc-toys-toys-cars-2-siddeley-spy-plane-die-cast-plane/mp/1286974/1000268/ RECEIPT: Disney Store #958 Rockvale Square Outlets 35 South Willowdale Drive Lancaster, PA 17602 717-391-6717 08/26/2011 6:59 PM Trans: [REDACTED] Store: 00958 Reg: [REDACTED] Till: [REDACTED] Cashier: [REDACTED] CM: [REDACTED] We paid $19.50 + 6% tax (we purchased other items that are fine) Eagerly awaiting a reply, [REDACTED]
Opened Magic Tracks Rocket Racers RC today. While my child was using the Remote Control to play with the racer cars, I noticed smoke coming from the remote. My Husband opened up the remote and we noticed the wires were burnt.
My 18 month old son was playing with his vtech sort and recycle ride on truck and while being supervised by multiple adults, and he was climbing on to ride from the front of the truck, he used the dump basket as a stepladder and his foot went though. It has a lip to collect toys. Unfortunately, its also the perfect shape for a toddler/baby foot to get stuck. With the way its constructed, it had to be cut off his foot. We oiled his foot which didnt work. Then we unscrewed the bottom and quickly realized it didnt make it any wider and luckily our calm child sat still while we grabbed garden pruners to cut open the dump basket. We didnt seek medical attention because he was not injured, but we couldnt wait for removal to risk him getting upset and snapping his leg. This toy is dangerous and vtech is very unbothered. I reported this to them that night. He couldve fallen and and broken his leg when it was stuck.
There is a battery located on the underside of the cars held covered by a case held in by a screw. when the screw was intact, the plastic door broke off due to spring tension on battery- the spring is still attached. The failure occurred to two of the toy vehicles. The consumer attempted to duplicate the failure on another and he noticed that that the spring that holds the battery in place is too big and is pushing out the cover. The battery is the size of a watch battery and the cover which is made out of plastic isnt strong enough to support the spring. On one of the vehicles a fire truck he attempted to super glue the cover on and it broke off exposing the spring and battery. He emailed the company on 9/26/2011 and received a response on 9/28/2011 indicating that they wanted the product to review it to see how the failure occured. The consumer isn't sure if he will send any back. There is a total of three toys. He removed the toys from the toddler because he fears that they pose as a choking hazard. He is unaware of where the product was purchased from his 18 month young son received it for a birthday present in March of 2011.
My husband and I gave our son a gift for his birthday. He opened it to find Hasbro Star Wars Titanium Series Die Cast vehicles containing an AT-TE, a Hailfire Droid and a Republic Gunship. He was very excited and started to try to get the box open. He was able to open the outer package and pull out the vehicles which were secured in the plastic packaging. Since there were ties holding the vehicles in, he asked me to cut the ties with scissors to get out the vehicles. At this point, the packaging had been set aside to get to the actual toys. After we got them out, he started playing with them and approximately two minutes later, he noticed that there was cardboard in the box decorated to look like explosions. He wanted to use that while he was playing, so he pulled it out. He then stated, "Look Mommy! They gave us something to open up the box with!" He was holding a razor blade in a holder that had been enclosed in between the outer packaging and the inner cardboard piece. Thank goodness that he did not injure himself. I am hoping that no other children will suffer a different fate.
I loved the size of this truck. My 2-year-old son has been using it since his great aunt purchased it for him from Costco in April of 2014 (it's now late September). He mostly uses it outside, pushing it from behind, hands on the top of the sides of the truck bed, running down hills with it, filling it with dirt or other yard waste, collecting stones and other things in the back of it as we walk around the neighborhood. It's awesome because it can be filled with water also. Durable plastic, easy to wash. The only complaint I have is that it wasn't durable enough to hold up longer than 5 months. The back left wheel snapped right off (plastic axle part) while my son was running with it down a hill. He fell and got scraped up, and needless to say, was very disappointed that it broke. I liked that it had the push-powered feature, especially because that seemed to provide resistance when pushing it down hill so he didn't go too fast. But I'm disappointed that the axle only had metal inside up to a point, then plastic, which snapped.
I connected the batteries in my sons Traxxas X-Maxx and an electrical arc occurred. It began smoking and popping. The connector started burning. I was able to disconnect the batteries before it caught on fire but burned my hand in the process. The ESC smells like it burned internally.
Showing 8 of 297 reports.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are toy vehicles (excluding riding toys)?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) have a danger score of 35/100 (low risk). An estimated 12,047 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from toy vehicles (excluding riding toys)?
The most common injury is laceration to the face, accounting for approximately 27,513 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) increasing or decreasing?
Down 19% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for toy vehicles (excluding riding toys) injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 88,957 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by toy vehicles (excluding riding toys)?
Of all ER visits involving toy vehicles (excluding riding toys), approximately 2.5% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (97.5%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with toy vehicles (excluding riding toys)?
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 Swimming, Water & Beach Equipment
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 35/100 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.