Millions of Americans will begin putting up Christmas lights and trees in the weeks ahead, and many will rely on ladders to hang the decorations just right.

But now the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued an alert notifying consumers that 3.6 million ladders are being recalled because they could unexpectedly retract.

And unfortunately, numerous people have already sustained broken bones, brain damage, and other injuries as a result. Here’s what you need to know.

On November 5, the CPSC published a recall notice alerting consumers that approximately 3,662,000 ladders made by Little Giant Ladder Systems were being recalled after the company received several reports of the ladders unexpectedly retracting, causing serious injuries to users.

The CPSC is warning that “The ladders can suddenly retract if the Rapid Locks are not fully engaged, posing a fall hazard to consumers.”

It explains that the Rapid Locks are black or orange components on the ladders’ legs, designed to be inserted to adjust the ladders’ height. When the Rapid Locks don’t work as intended, the ladders can suddenly retract, causing the user to fall and sustain serious injuries.

Little Giant has also published its own recall notice, in which the ladder manufacturer warns of the same hazard.

According to the CPSC notice, Little Giant has received 39 reports of the Rapid Locks not working properly on its ladders. It has also received 25 reports of the ladders retracting.

Further, the company has received 19 reports of people being injured.

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