The Most Common Home Accidents and How to Prevent Them

Last Updated on February 16, 2020 by Diane Hoffmaster

Accidents happen every day, no matter how hard we try to prevent them. There is nothing that you can do to ensure your family's complete safety, however, some of the most common home accidents CAN be avoided with a few safety precautions.  If you are concerned about safety in your home, here are a few ways to minimize the most frequent accidents around the house.

Most Common Home Accidents and How to Prevent Them

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Prevent Falling Objects:

When my children were little, they were extremely curious...like most children are!  They were always trying to tug on electrical cords, table clothes, and anything else they found that led to the magical place called 'UP'!  If you have children, you need to be particularly cautious of falling objects.  Make sure that electrical cords, table clothes, dishes, picture frames, etc. are away from curious fingers.  If you don't have kids, make sure you don't store frequently used objects in the highest cabinets of your kitchen.

Trips and Falls:

I used to work in a retail store and falls on slippery floors were a serious problem. Tips and falls are one of the most common home accidents and are hard to prevent. Obviously, anyone can take a tumble but the very young and very old are most at risk.  To prevent falls in the home, make sure you pick up toys, shoes, and other 'debris' regularly.  Keep electrical cords out of the way or cover them with duct tape.  Make sure carpets are tacked down and keep them off the floor completely if possible when there are unsteady walkers in the house.

Dangerous furniture:

There have been a lot of cases in the media about dangerous furniture accidents.  Be particularly careful with furniture that has sharp edges.  Get furniture corner bumpers to soften those sharp edges to protect heads and shins.  Be especially careful with glass topped tables, especially if you have small children or someone who is elderly living with you.  Anchor large, heavy furniture to the wall to prevent anyone from being pinned underneath it.  When hanging a mounted television, make sure it is well secured and all wires are safely tucked away.  Get a toddler home safety kit for corner covers and many other safety items to protect your toddlers.

Take Care with Sharp Objects:

Sharp objects like knives are a danger to everyone, not just small children.  When you wash your knives, make sure to handle them properly and then store them safely in a knife block.  Reaching into a crowded drawer with a loose knife in there isn't safe at all!

Avoid Burns:

Stoves aren't the only things that can burn enough to send you to the doctor.  Hot cups of coffee, tea, and hot chocolate are also dangerous.  Hot drinks and food are a particular problem for small children.  Check the temperature setting on your water heater to prevent scalding when bathing or showering.  Do not set it higher than 120 degrees Fahrenheit.  Get a bathtub water thermometer to check the water temperature before putting your child in the tub.

The most common burns in the home involve cooking or hair straightening.  Make sure to keep handles from pots and pans turned inwards to prevent children from grabbing them.  And monitor your child around your hair straightener to prevent burns!

If you do get burned, run the area under cold water immediately for a couple of minutes.  If severe blistering is visible, head to the doctor!

Check out my post about Christmas tree fires if you are looking for more home safety tips.  You should also keep a fire extinguishing aerosol spray in the house as well. 

Accidental Poisoning:

When my son was 2, he got into our medicine cabinet, got a bottle of rubbing alcohol open and tried to drink it.  Thankfully, his aim was off and it ended up on his shirt and not in his mouth but I was freaked out completely.  Poisoning in the home usually involves medication or household products.  Make sure you keep all of these items out of the reach of children.  Invest in cabinet locks and doorknob locks to keep little hands out of areas they shouldn't be in.  Make sure you have the poison control phone number on your refrigerator, just in case.

Some of the most common home accidents can be prevented with a little bit of analysis and precaution.  While we cannot completely prevent all injuries in the home, we can greatly minimize the chances of being hurt.  If an accident does occur, it is important to have all of your emergency phone numbers readily available.  Stick a magnet or list on the refrigerator with numbers for poison control, the doctor, etc.

Like these home safety tips?

Check out these Emergency Preparedness Tips

Diane Hoffmaster

Diane is a professional blogger and nationally certified pharmacy technician at Good Pill Pharmacy.  She has two college aged kids, one husband and more pets than she will admit to. She earned her BS in Microbiology at the University of New Hampshire  but left her career in science to become a stay at home mom. Years of playing with LEGO and coloring with crayons had her craving a more grown up purpose to her life and she began blogging and freelance writing full time.  You can learn more about her HERE.