CPSC recall 14-185, announced May 20, 2014, covers Portable bed handles (about 113,000 units). When attached to an adult's bed without the use of safety retention straps, the handle can shift out of place, creating a dangerous gap between the bed handle and the side of the mattress. Consumers should immediately stop using all recalled bed handles that were sold without safety retention straps. Recall contact: call (800) 725-6903, or go to bedhandles.com/recall.html.
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Compare the model on your label, then check any serial numbers, date codes, and exclusions in the notice. A model match alone does not confirm that your unit is included.
Bed Handles Inc. and the model number are printed on a white label on the bed handles.
Which products are included?
The recall involves adult portable bed handles that do not have safety retention straps to secure the bed handle to the bed frame to keep the bed handle from shifting out of place and creating a dangerous gap. Recalled models include the Original Bedside Assistant® (BA10W), the Travel Handles™ (BA11W) which is sold as a set of two bed handles, and the Adjustable Bedside Assistant® (AJ1). The L-shaped bed handles are made out of ¾ inch tubular steel, measure 20 inches wide, 16 to 20 inches tall and have 3 ft. poles that extend under the mattress. The Original Bedside Assistant® (BA10W) and the Travel Handles™ (BA11W) have a white handle with white poles that go under the mattress. The Adjustable Bedside Assistant® (AJ1) is gold in color and has a black cushioned foam handle. The bed handles are intended to assist adults with getting in and out of bed by giving them a bar to grip. Bed Handles Inc. and the model number are printed on a white label on the bed handles.
Confirm these details on the official CPSC noticeWhat to look for
- Model numbers
- 2 listed, all starting with
BA1. Yours must match one exactly. - Where to look
a white label on the bed handles
(the notice’s words)- When sold
- January 1994 through December 2007
- Price paid
- $100
Why it was recalled
When attached to an adult's bed without the use of safety retention straps, the handle can shift out of place, creating a dangerous gap between the bed handle and the side of the mattress. This poses a serious risk of entrapment, strangulation and death.
Incidents and injuries
Three women died after becoming entrapped between the mattress and the bed handles. They include an elderly woman, age unknown, who died in an Edina, Minn. assisted living facility; a 41-year-old disabled woman who died in a Renton, Wash. adult family home; and an 81-year-old woman who died in a Vancouver, Wash. managed care facility.
Official remedy
Consumers should immediately stop using all recalled bed handles that were sold without safety retention straps. Contact Bed Handles Inc. for free safety retention straps to secure the bed handle to the bed frame, new assembly and installation instructions for models BA10W, BA11W and AJ1 and a warning label to attach to the bed handles. The bed handles should be used only with the safety retention straps securely in place attaching the bed handle to the bed frame in order to prevent a gap.
What to do now
- Check the label. Compare your model number with the 2 listed in this recall.
- Stop using it. The notice says to stop using recalled units immediately.
- Contact the firm. Call (800) 725-6903, or go to bedhandles.com/recall.html.
- Get the remedy. This recall offers a repair. The notice says the remedy is free.
- Read the official notice. The CPSC notice is the final word on which units are included and what to do.
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Product and sales details
- Brand
- Bed Handles
- Manufacturer
- Bed Handles Inc., of Blue Springs, Mo.
- Product type
- Bed rails
- Recall number
- 14-185
- Units
- About 113,000
- Manufactured in
- United States
- Sold at / sales period
- Home health care stores, drug stores and medical equipment stores nationwide and in home and health care catalogs from January 1994 through December 2007 for about $100.
Portable bed handles
CPSC product type: Bed Rails
This recall in context
Compared with the 47 bed rail recalls in this index, as of October 31, 2026.
- Size
- 113,000 units: the 6th-largest of 41 bed rail recalls that state a unit count. The median is 6,187 units.
- Hazards
- Strangulation: named in 4 of 47 bed rail recalls. Entrapment: named in 46 of 47 bed rail recalls, the most common hazard among them.
- Remedy
- Repair: offered in 7 of 47 bed rail recalls. The most common is refund (38).
- Brand history
- Bed Handles is named in 3 CPSC notices in this index, from 2014 to 2015. This recall is the earliest. 3 of them are bed rail recalls.
- Time on sale
- About 14 years. Recalled 77 months after the last month of sales the notice gives.
Recall contact information
Bed Handles Inc. at (800) 725-6903 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, or online at http://bedhandles.com/recall.html.
Verify phone numbers, hours, and websites on the current CPSC notice before contacting the firm.
Know someone who has one?
Recalls only work when owners hear about them. Send this notice to family or friends who might own the same product.
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