Death by vending machine

{{Short description|Cause of accidental death}}

Image:Vending machines at hospital.jpg

File:Vending machine warning sticker.jpg

Vending machines being rocked or tilted have been known to cause serious injury and death when the heavy machines fall over.

Users may rock machines in order to obtain free products, release stuck products, or obtain change.{{Cite web |date=January 1, 1992 |title=Sun Journal - Google News Archive Search |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1914&dat=19920101&id=nQkgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=aGUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6696,6717&hl=en |publisher=Sun Journal}} The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission found in a 1995 study that at least 37 deaths and 113 injuries had occurred due to falling vending machines from 1978 to 1995.{{Cite web |last=Landers |first=Ann |date=1998-09-13 |title=Warning: Don’t jiggle that vending machine |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1998/09/13/warning-dont-jiggle-that-vending-machine/ |access-date= |website=Chicago Tribune |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=CPSC, Soda Vending Machine Industry Labeling Campaign Warns Of Deaths And Injuries |url=https://www.cpsc.gov/Newsroom/News-Releases/1996/CPSC-Soda-Vending-Machine-Industry-Labeling-Campaign-Warns-Of-Deaths-And-Injuries |access-date= |website=U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission |language=}} This resulted in a voluntary campaign from vending machine manufacturers to warn that rocking or tilting the machines could cause serious injury or death, including placing warning labels on all machines.Morford, Mark (18 July 2001). [https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/morford/article/Death-By-Vending-Machine-Warning-Large-heavy-2898202.php Death By Vending Machine / Warning: Large heavy appliances can be hazardous to your health], San Francisco Chronicle{{Cite web |last= |date=1995-02-10 |title=Teen-ager crushed to death under vending machine |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1995/02/10/teen-ager-crushed-to-death-under-vending-machine/ |access-date= |website=Orlando Sentinel |language=en-US}} The U.S. military started putting warning labels on machines in the late 1980s after a number of incidents on military installations.{{Cite web |date=January 2, 1996 |title=Toledo Blade - Google News Archive Search |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1350&dat=19960102&id=lE4xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=cAMEAAAAIBAJ&pg=925,187236&hl=en |access-date= |website= |publisher=The Toledo Blade}}

The vast majority of injuries and deaths have happened to men.{{Cite news |last=Abrahams |first=Marc |date=2015-01-20 |title=The (mainly) men who have fallen under sway of drinks vending machines |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/jan/20/improbable-research-vending-machine-injuries-and-deaths |access-date= |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}{{Cite journal |last=Cosio |first=Michael Q. |date=1988-11-11 |title=Soda Pop Vending Machine Injuries |url=https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/374932 |journal=JAMA |volume=260 |issue=18 |pages=2697–2699 |doi=10.1001/jama.1988.03410180105039 |issn=0098-7484|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last1=Cosio |first1=Michael Q. |last2=Taylor |first2=Gregg W. |date=June 1992 |title=Soda Pop Vending Machine Injuries: An Update |url=http://journals.lww.com/00005131-199206000-00009 |journal=Journal of Orthopaedic Trauma |language=en |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=186–189 |doi=10.1097/00005131-199206000-00009 |pmid=1602339 |s2cid=2499640 |issn=0890-5339|url-access=subscription }}

The argument that death by a vending machine is more likely to occur than something like winning the Powerball lottery, has drawn more attention to these unusual deaths.{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Sara G. |date=2016-01-12 |title=Will You Win Powerball? A Vending Machine Death Is More Likely |url=https://www.livescience.com/53342-powerball-odds-not-in-your-favor.html |access-date= |website=livescience.com |language=en}} One 2012 report states that the odds of winning Powerball are 1 in 175 million, versus 1 in 112 million of getting killed by a vending machine.Memott, Mark (28 November 2012). [https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2012/11/28/166061960/winning-powerball-its-more-likely-a-vending-machine-will-kill-you Winning Powerball? It's More Likely A Vending Machine Will Kill You], NPR A similar comparison is often drawn to emphasize the rare occurrence of lethal shark attacks.{{Cite news |last=Docter-Loeb |first=Hannah |date=2022-07-27 |title=Do Vending Machines Really Kill More Americans Than Sharks Every Year? |language=en-US |work=Slate |url=https://slate.com/technology/2022/07/sharks-vending-machines-death.html |access-date=2023-11-09 |issn=1091-2339}}