Ikea has agreed to pay $50 million (£41 million) to the families of three young boys who were crushed by falling dressers in three separate incidents in the United States.

The settlements, which have still to be approved by the courts in the US, follow fatal accidents in West Chester, Pennsylvania; Snohomish, Washington and Apple Valley, Minnesota.

In all three cases the boys were two years old.

Johanna Iritz, a spokeswoman for Ikea in Sweden, said on Thursday that "it would be inappropriate to comment" while the case was still before the courts.

Details of the settlement with the world's largest furniture retailer were announced by the families' lawyers. It was agreed following two days of mediation.

In December last year a British grandmother, Carol Ravenscroft, was awarded £3,500 for injuries she suffered when she acted as a human shield to protect her grandson from a falling wardrobe at an Ikea store in Warrington, Cheshire.