Stepladders: Why They’re Not Safe

Abstract

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that there are approximately 180,000 serious ladder accidents in the US each year. Stepladders are one of the most common types of ladders in use, and it is estimated that they are involved in over half of all incidents. Therefore, it is important to determine the root causes of these accidents and what, if anything, can be done to improve ladder safety by way of design and standard testing requirements. Herein, we discuss common failure modes experienced during use, current design standards promulgated by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A14 Standards Committee, complications which are not explicitly addressed in these standards, and design and manufacturing practices employed in stepladders produced for the US market. Finally, we propose a number of potential safety improvements to the current design of and safety standards for stepladders, though further research may be necessary to quantify specific design recommendations.