A recent case of a Nottingham toddler being injured by a domestic paper shredder has highlighted the need for safety around such machines. In the US, an investigation has looked into the number of incidents and injuries sustained, particularly children.

The investigation of the reported finger injuries that also included amputations as well as characteristics of domestic paper shredders that may have contributed to such injuries was carried out by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. There were 23 reported finger injuries that were attributed to domestic paper shredders as per the database of the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NIESS). The age of victims who suffered these injuries ranged from 14 months upwards.

Out of the 23 reported finger injuries due to domestic paper shredders, children below the age of five years were involved in 15 such injuries. However, the victims of finger injuries due to domestic paper shredders also included 20 years old as well as 65 years old. The report on such injuries due to domestic paper shredders was published in December 2004.

Amputations, the most severe injury due to domestic paper shredders, involved children. A child was injured even when the paper was fed into the paper shredder under adult supervision as the paper was not released in time which may have prevented the fingers from entering the opening of the shredder. The shredder pulled in the fingers of the child as it continued to pull the paper inside the opening.

Due to the auto-start feature of the paper shredder, a child can be at risk of getting injured even in the presence of an adult. After inserting paper into the opening of the shredder and activating the mechanism, a child’s fingers may be pulled into the shredder along with the paper. Since children are not aware of the dangers of shredders, they may not let go of the paper when it is being pulled in by the shredder.

Children as young as 15 months are at risk of finger injury due to paper shredders as they have very small finger sizes. A child’s finger won’t penetrate the opening of the shredder without the application of the force as the diameter of a child’s finger is typically larger than the opening of the paper shredder but the shredder may pull in a child’s fingers along with the paper as the opening is large enough due to design of the shredder. Since a 15-month-old child can be twice as tall as a paper shredder, it puts them within easy reach of the opening of the paper shredder.

International Electrotechnical Commission is the international standard applied to paper shredders. The method used for testing the safety of paper shredders involves the use of a probe with a width equivalent to the fingers of a 12-year-old child. This testing method did not intend to determine the risk of finger injury to children below the age of 12.

Before the publication of this report by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, the tested shredders were available in the market in the range of $20-$70.

Several design characteristics may contribute to the dangers to toddlers. Some of these include the stiffness of the material used for constructing the shredder throat, the width of the shredder opening, the pulling power of the shredding mechanism and the distance between the opening and the cutting mechanism inside the shredder. During the testing, it was found that the crosscut shredders allow larger diameter probes to go through the opening as compared to the strip-cut shredders.

Also, the motor used in crosscut shredders was more powerful and this put a child at a greater risk as the powerful motor was able to pull in the fingers more easily. All the tested shredders had only auto/forward/reverse functions and none of them featured a separate on/off switch. The critical safety information regarding the risk of injury was not universally displayed on all the tested models and some of the models had absolutely no warning signs at the opening.

Some of the tested shredders also did not come with contrasting colours for various switches. It’s a safety concern as it may cause confusion when it becomes necessary to reverse or turn off the shredder in an emergency.

Summary of the observations given by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission

Crosscut shredders allowed thicker rigid probes to pass into the opening of the shredder as compared to the strip-cut shredders.

The motors in crosscut shredders were more powerful and more likely to pull in the fingers of a child.

The crosscut shredders allowed the smallest compressible probe to go through the opening.

The crosscut shredders allowed bigger compressible probes to go through the shredder throat.

All the shredders did not feature an OFF position on the functions though some did.

There wasn’t a separate on/off switch on all the shredders tested but all the tested shredders had only auto/forward/reverse functions.

There were no universal hazard markings at the opening of the shredder.

Only a few shredders featured contrasting colors for markings but not all.

Only a few shredders featured contrasting colors for function markings but not all.

Some conclusions were derived by the CPSC on the basis of tested samples but the report also pointed out that the test did not include a sample of all types of paper shredders and it was not a statistical sampling.

Children between the ages of 15 to 30 months were at the greatest risk of finger injuries due to paper shredders.

The level of risk of injury depended on the shredder opening.

The testing as of December 2004 did not relate to hazards that involve small children.

The amount of force needed to insert a probe in the shredder depends on the design of the throat. The factors that determine this force include the stiffness of the opening, the width of the opening, the compressibility of fingers, the distance between the opening and the shredder mechanism and the pulling force of the shredder mechanism.

The researchers called on the manufacturers of the domestic paper shredders to make changes to the design to improve safety aspects and to carry clear warnings related to injuries on these machines. The researchers also recommend that paediatricians should ask the parents about the presence of a paper shredder in their home and in case of the presence of a paper shredder, advise them to leave the machine unplugged and out of reach of children, and to never allow the use of shredder by a child even in the presence of an adult.

If you’re concerned about the safety of using paper and document shredding, then consider using a professional shredding service. There are many services available which cover both commercial and domestic shredding needs. Here are some we found during a quick search:

(Updated) Shredding Companies in Nottingham include:

ShredPro Nottingham: https://www.shredpro-uk.com/shredding-services-nottingham/

EasyShred Notts
Shred Anything
DocShred

Do you know of any more shredding companies we could list here? Get in touch.