New children’s product safety requirements to take effect in February
January 12, 2009
World Trade\Interactive
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has recently issued the following guidance on new requirements under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act that will take effect Feb. 10. Manufacturers, importers and retailers are expected to comply with these requirements.
Lead Ban. Beginning Feb. 10 children’s products cannot be sold in the U.S. if they contain more than 600 parts per million total lead, even if they were manufactured before that date. The total lead limit will drop to 300 ppm on Aug. 14, 2009.
Phthalates. Certain children’s products manufactured on or after Feb. 10 cannot be sold in the U.S. if they contain more than 0.1 percent of certain phthalates or if they fail to meet new mandatory standards for toys.
Certification. Importers and domestic manufacturers must certify that children’s products made after Feb. 10 comply with all new safety standards and the lead ban. Sellers of used children’s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards.
Resellers. Resellers are not required to test children’s products in inventory for compliance with the lead limit before they are sold. However, resellers cannot sell children’s products that exceed the lead limit and therefore should avoid products that are likely to have lead content unless they have testing or other information to indicate that the products being sold have less than the new limit. Those resellers that do sell products in violation of the new limits could face civil and/or criminal penalties.
When the CPSIA was signed into law Aug. 14, 2008, it became unlawful to sell recalled products. All resellers should check the CPSC Web site for information on recalled products before taking a product into inventory or selling it. The selling of recalled products could also carry civil and/or criminal penalties.
Resellers should pay special attention to certain product categories, including the following.
• recalled children’s products, particularly cribs and play yards
• children’s products that may contain lead, such as children’s jewelry and painted wooden or metal toys
• flimsily made toys that are easily breakable into small parts
• toys that lack the required age warnings
• dolls and stuffed toys that have buttons, eyes, noses or other small parts that are not securely fastened and could present a choking hazard for young children
|
|
