But it turns out wine corks are mere tiddlers in the high-stakes game of Christmas cheer.
Some 137 claims were made for injuries associated with Christmas trees - at a cost of $93,413 - although this was well down on the 217 such claims in 2015.
Injury claims related to Christmas festivities last Christmas. Source: Accident Compensation Corporation
"There were quite a few injuries involving lifting and carrying Christmas trees, in particular bending over to pick it up," the spokesman said.
"People reaching up high to decorate the tree was also trending ..."
Labour MP Tamati Coffey's partner is among those to be felled in a tree-tangle.
Tim Smith was standing on a couch to place lights high on the Christmas tree in the couple's Rotorua home on Sunday when he was hit by the ceiling fan, which was spinning at full speed, and fell.
Coffey, who was in the kitchen, said he heard a yell then a thump and ran into the lounge to see Smith on the floor. Smith, who landed on his left elbow, was momentarily unconscious but told Coffey he did not need an ambulance.
Coffey took Smith to Rotorua Hospital where he was today waiting for an operation on his arm.
ACC, in the full knowledge of almost all that can go wrong, urged people to use a stepladder to hang decorations - "not a chair, or worst still, a chair on a table".
"Ensure your Christmas tree has a sturdy base to stop it toppling over."
Festive lights got tangled up in 45 injury claims last year, down from 61 in 2015.
Lights-related injuries often resulted from falls, especially from ladders when people were rigging up the festive look outdoors.
"Another common cause was from reaching and twisting while decorating, and straining their back to pick up bundles of Christmas lights.
"We also saw instances of people tripping over Christmas light cords and bundles left on the floor."
"If your tree has lights, run the power cord to it along the wall, not across the floor."
Christmas presents were cited for 20 claims last year, although the primary problem seems to have been what people did with presents - such as bending to pick a present up, or slipping with a knife and cutting a finger when opening one - rather than the gifts themselves.
Likewise the seven "roast-dinner" claims, which the ACC spokesman said weren't about cooking, "but mainly around the dinner table, such as dropping a dish, tripping over an object, and knocking a body part".
"There was one nasty one - someone slicing ham and they nearly took their finger off. They needed some fairly extensive assistance."
Other Christmastime injury trends noted by ACC, separate from the actual festivities, include:
• "Quite a number" of dog bites, nips and scratches involving over-excited children and dogs,
• Falls from bicycles - "presumably new presents",
• Prickles puncturing bare feet,
• Plenty of insect bites,
• Accidents while jumping on the bed,
• Water balloons gone awry.
