A mother has branded a popular pushchair model ‘dangerous’ after its brakes allegedly failed, causing her toddler son to suffer a head injury.
Holly Lansdowne, 30, said the buggy suddenly ‘rolled away’ towards a reservoir when she was out on a family walk and flipped over before reaching the water.
Her son Oscar, two, suffered a bruised eye, bleeding nose and cut to his head in the frightening incident.
Ms Lansdowne is speaking out after discovering similar complaints about the Hauck Runner pushchair brakes from other mothers on social media.
She believes the German manufacturer should recall the product to investigate to prevent further incidents.
Holly’s son Oscar (pictured) suffered a bruised eye, bleeding nose and cut to his head
The Hauck Runner pushchair that ‘spun around and flipped over’ with Ms Lansdowne’s two-year-old son strapped inside
Holly Lansdowne, 30, (pictured) has issued an urgent warning after her son’s pushchair allegedly malfunctioned
The incident happened last Saturday when Ms Lansdowne took Oscar and his brother Charlie, four, along with their dogs for a walk at Cod Beck Reservoir near Osmotherley, North Yorkshire.
She said she applied the pushchair brakes and bent down to clear up after one of her springer spaniels who ‘did their business’ when the ‘brake failed.’
‘It rolled off and saw it go past me. I just dropped everything and tried to grab it but couldn’t. It happened so quickly. A couple who were nearby saw it too and shouted as well.
‘The pushchair spun around and flipped over. I’m not sure how far it rolled, probably about 8ft or so.’
‘It all happened so quickly, the only thing that I thought was ‘oh my goodness, is it going to go towards the water?’
‘If it hadn’t flipped when it did, it would’ve gone into the reservoir.’
Oscar was ‘screaming the place down,’ she said.
She said she was grateful the incident didn’t happen near a busy road. The couple who witnessed it luckily had an ice pack in their car, which helped reduce her son’s swelling and he was soon smiling again.
Ms Lansdowne was concerned about the boy’s eye and took him to hospital to be checked, but he didn’t require treatment.
Oscar suffered bruising and cuts after the ‘buggy incident’ but has since made a full recovery
Cod Beck Reservoir near Osmotherley, North Yorkshire, where Oscar was injured
She bought the pushchair, which is described on the Hauck website as ‘robust all-terrain’, for £150 from Argos in June.
The mother said she was shocked to later discover this was ‘not an isolated incident’ and other mothers had complained to Hauck about similar incidents.
‘I 100 per cent applied the brakes properly. I think this product should be recalled as in my opinion it’s clearly dangerous,’ she said.
A spokesperson for Hauck said the company worked hard ‘to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children’.
‘All items are tested by independent test houses to ensure they meet or exceed the strict European safety standards for baby products,’ they said.
‘We will contact the consumer directly to arrange collection and inspection of the product to identify the root cause of the incident.’
Evidence on social media suggested there was an issue with the model’s brakes.
Oscar, two, was taken to hospital but did not require treatment
Ms Lansdowne has decided to issue a warning about the Hauck Runner pushchair (pictured) after discovering complaints about the brakes from other mothers on social media
In an online discussion about the Hauck Runner buggy, one mother warned three years ago: ‘Don’t buy this buggy.’ She said the brake mechanism ‘wasn’t safe,’ and added: ‘Every time I tried to apply the brake I would have to roll the buggy back and forward until it was safe to secure it…and now I have a buggy that’s useless.’
Last year another mother wrote: ‘The quality is diabolical…I always check and double check the brakes every time I apply them, making sure they click firmly into place, but they come off without rhyme, reason or warning, this has led to the buggy rolling into the road on two separate occasions, my son narrowly missed being hit by a car on one of those occasions.’
A third commented in July: ‘Please don’t buy this product. My son (2) rolled backwards into the road today whilst my husband turned to lock the door. I’d already expressed concerns to the company about the dodgy brakes that don’t seem to clip in properly.’
While an anonymous post in August stated: ‘The brakes failed and my baby rolled down the hill and fell over. The brakes have failed numerous times since (but I was obviously more prepared). I only bought this product five months ago.’
Ms Lansdowne has also contacted Trading Standards at North Yorkshire Council and Argos to raise awareness.
Head of Trading Standards Jo Boutflower said: ‘The safety of all consumer products, whether they are sold as new or second-hand, is controlled by strict regulations.
‘If a product is inherently unsafe, it can be subject to a recall, suspension or withdrawal from the market.’