Concerns about Safety of Second Hand Toy Purchases

Government safety officials are concerned that money-conscious parents will purchase holiday gifts from secondhand, online sellers, who may not be aware of safety issues.

In a study published in the journal Injury Prevention, many products recalled years ago including bassinets, strollers, play yards, and various toys are for sale on eBay. Study authors randomly selected about 150 items that were recalled by the CPSC between 1992 and 2004. After tracking them for a month on eBay, researchers found that nearly 70 percent of the goods were eventually sold (despite the site's policy prohibiting the sale of recalled products). It does not appear the sellers are purposely trying to unload dangerous items, says study author Keri Brown Kirschman, PhD, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Dayton. "They're just parents trying to recycle old children's stuff and are probably completely unaware that these items have been found to be dangerous."

In 2008, the recalled products included cribs sold as far back as 1995 and toys as old as 1999. Most parents either don't hear about the recalls or don't have the information necessary to know if their products are part of the recall (purchase date, product number, etc.)

Before purchasing from eBay or after purchasing from a second hand store, be sure to enter the purchase in your SmartToyChoice account to check for a previous recall.

http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/13/4/228
http://www.parents.com/baby/safety/other-issues/recalled-baby-products/?sssdmh=dm17.344268&esrc=nwpce19_09&email=763132636

Car Seat Strap Position

When my daughter was a baby, I remember reading about car seat straps and there was a difference in where the strap should be if the car seat was forward facing or rear facing. As my son has now switched from rear facing to forward facing in the car seat, I have been trying to remember what I read all those years ago. Finally I found the information again on the Dorel Juvenille Group (maker of Cosco, Eddie Bauer and Safety 1st Car Seats) website.

Forward Facing Car Seat
For a child that is in the forward facing toddler position, the straps must be even with or above the child's shoulders.
Rear Facing Car Seat
For an infant that is rear facing, the harness straps should be even with or just below the baby's shoulders. If the harness is above the baby's shoulders with the straps in the lowest position, do not use the car seat until the baby grows into it.

SmartToyChoice has expanded its toy recall service to include other children's products including car seats.

150,000 Remote Control Helicopters Recalled

Over 150,000 Remote Control Helicopters sold at Walgreens were recalled by the CPSC today due to Fire and Burn Hazards from the rechargeable battery. This is proof again of the following SmartToyChoice Ten Toy Recall Myths -

Only parents of preschool children need to worry about toy recalls
Not true. Parents of preschool children must worry about toy recalls, especially if their children are prone to putting toys in their mouths. Yet, not all recalls are for toys that cause problems when ingested. Easy Bake ovens were recalled because children’s hands were trapped and burned in the oven. Remote control airplanes were recalled because the batteries were catching fire or exploding and causing hearing loss.Toys were also recalled for breaking and causing lacerations.

For more of the Ten Toy Recall Myths please click on the following http://www.smarttoychoice.com/dsp/dsp_toy_recall_myths.php

Interesting Recall Timing on Beco Baby Butterfly Infant Carriers

The CPSC issued a recall today (April 22, 2008) for the Beco Baby Butterfly Infant Carriers. This is the second infant carrier recalled this year (the Ellaroo Infant Sling was recalled on 3/11/2008). As I was entering the recall into the SmartToyChoice.com database, I researched the recall at the http://www.becobabycarrier.com/ site and on their blog, Beco Baby announced the recall on March 7, 2008. Over a month passed from the time the manufacturer announced the recall on a blog to when the CPSC issued a national recall.

Apparently the buckles on the carrier shoulder straps can unexpectedly release tension causing the strap to slip through - which means the baby could fall out. Beco Baby has received 8 reports of the strap slipping though the shoulder buckles but no injuries have been reported.

Rising Toy Prices and the Cost to Parents of Recalled Toys

Toy makers expect toy prices to increase by 5 to 10% by the end of the year. This price increase is apparently not due to all of the toy recalls last year but due to higher wages in China, higher costs of raw materials (plastic has risen by 25% over the past two years due to higher gas prices), and a weaker dollar compared to the Chinese yuan which makes it more expensive to buy Chinese goods.

While we as parents are going to have to pay more for our children’s toys, I would like to point out a statistic that SmartToyChoice follows which is the estimated amount of money parents spend on toys that are recalled. For the 30 toy recalls so far in 2008, the retail value of the toys recalled is $74 million ($611 million in 2007).

Global Product Safety Standard Meeting in June

The EU and United States are meeting in June to consider a global set of product safety standards. Manufacturers such as Hasbro and Mattel are said to be in favor of a global standard according to an article in Reuters by Darren Ennis. Nancy Nord of the CPSC suggested in this article that one of the reasons for all of the toy recalls is that companies were manufacturing to different safety standards for different countries and that a global standard would help manufacturers to produce more consistent products.

Plan Toys - The Green Company Recalls Toy Penguin

Yesterday, Plan Toys - Green Toy -Green Company, recalled their Toy Penguin due to a report of the head detaching and sharp connectors posing a laceration hazard. This recall from a "Green" Company supports the following SmartToyChoice "Ten Toy Recall Myths":


Only "toxic" toys are recalled
Not true. While lead paint in toys made the headlines in 2007, they accounted for only 41 of the 81 recalls, which was for just 4 million of the over 27 million toys recalled. The other 23 million toys recalled were due to magnets small enough to be swallowed, toys causing lacerations, severed fingers, burns, and loss of hearing.

Visit http://www.smarttoychoice.com/dsp/dsp_toy_recall_myths.php to read more toy recall myths that are untrue.

Albany NY Kidz Expo Results

We met many concerned parents on Saturday at the Albany Kidz Expo. Some were surprised to see the Cranium Cadoo game or the Baby Einstein Crib Toy on the list of recalled toys for 2008. Several parents realized that toy recalls are not just for the preschoolers when they saw their children's remote controlled helicopter on the current year recall list as well. We accomplished our number one mission on Saturday - to let parents know - toy recalls are still an issue.

Winners of the drawing for the free year subscription to SmartToyChoice were notified by email today.

Thank you for visiting our booth.

Albany NY Kidz Expo

We are busy preparing for the Albany Kidz Expo on Saturday, March 1st from 10-5 at the Empire State Convention Center. SmartToyChoice will have a booth on the main floor near the bounce house. Please stop by to learn how you can manage the safety of your children's toys through our personalized toy recall notification service. There will be a drawing for a free one year subscription to SmartToyChoice.com.

We look forwarded to talking with you.

Claire

Safety chief urges toymakers to get the lead out

In an article by Karey Wutkowski at http://www.reuters.com/article/Regulation08/idUSN0725654020080219, the top U.S. product safety regulator on Tuesday, February 19, 2008, urged manufacturers to remove lead from children's products before congressional action would essentially ban lead from toys. Congress is expected to vote to increase funding for the CPSC and cut the amount of allowable lead content in toys. Nancy Nord of the CPSC suggested that the time for testing lead tolerances should be over.

While excessive levels of lead dominated the news before Christmas and accounted for 42 of the 81 recalls issued by the CPSC in 2007, less than 20% of the 27 million toys recalled last year were due to lead. Magnets, burn issues, and lacerations accounted for the other 21 million toys. Again in 2008, lead accounts for less than 20% of the 300,000 toys recalled so far.

As a mother, I applaud the efforts to remove lead from my children's toys (I thought that happened a long time ago), though Congress does still need to increase funding for the CPSC to help oversee all the other manufacturing problems.

No Future Change to Made in China

Over 75% of the toys sold in the United States are made in China. As of January 25,2008, there have been seven recalls of over 200,000 toys. All of the toys have been made in China or Taiwan. Will there be a change in where the toys are made?

In a recent article in the International Herald Tribune by Donald Greenlees titled Toy Industry Tries to Regain Parents' Trust, the author summarizes the articles stating that it

"is unlikely to see any fundamental change in where toys are made.Despite the product scares of 2007 and the prospect of higher costs, toy companies say there is no realistic alternative to China.Philip Shoptaugh, who owns the Oakland, California-based Shoptaugh Games, an educational toy maker, said China's toy industry infrastructure and labor rates still give it a big edge over alternatives "I think there are probably a lot of shoppers who made an effort over Christmas to read the box and say 'it's made in China, I won't buy made in China this year,"' he said."But having said that, are you going to pay twice as much for a doll because it's not made in China? The thing is you cannot make these products in the United States and have them be competitive on the shelf."

After hearing of all the toy recalls last year and the problem products (like antifreeze in toothpaste) from China, I decided to ban all toys from China in our house. I looked at all the toys in our house and found ONE made in Germany - all the rest - China. So I started looking for alternatives - and for some toys there are definitely alternatives. But while we may be willing to pay more for toys not made in China - in some toy categories there just aren't good alternatives.

In starting SmartToyChoice.com, I read a very interesting book called A Year Without "Made in China": One Family's True Life Adventure in the Global Economy by Sara Bongiorni (which you can purchase for $16 through the Amazon link on our website.) A story about a family's struggle in going an entire year without buying products made in China. It was amazing to me to realize what all comes from China.

While it doesn't look like there will be a change in where the majority of toys are made, in the end, I decided I couldn't completely ban China. I definitely look at labels (especially toothpaste) and when I can buy out of China, I definitely do. As a result, I feel like I am at least now making an informed decision when I buy toys.

Home Lead Test Kits

Home Lead Test Kits
The other day I saw one of those home lead test kits in the store. With the second recall of 2008 issued this week for excessive lead in children’s toys, I decided to do some research to see if these home kits were worthwhile.

“Useful . . . though limited” is what Consumer Reports said about three of the five testers.

The CPSC study of home lead tests resulted in the following caution : “Consumers should exercise caution when using these test kits to evaluate consumer products for potential lead exposures. False results can make it difficult or impossible for consumers to determine the proper course of action to take. In fact, CPSC staff has tested a number of other samples that had been identified by consumers and others based on their use of inexpensive test kits as having high lead levels. To date, none of these items has actually had high lead levels based on CPSC lab analysis. This is another indication of the poor reliability of the kits for this purpose. Testing by a qualified laboratory and trained personnel is the only way to accurately assess the potential risk posed by a consumer product that may contain lead.”

From a pediatricsblog: “Even if they were reliable, testing toys yourself isn't very practical. Most toys include many pieces or are at least painted with several different colors and you would likely have to test each to be complete. For example, with the Barbie Dream Puppy House that was recalled this year, lead paint was only found on the puppy that was included with the toy. With lead test kits typically costing about $1 a test, it will quickly get expensive to test even just your child's most played with toys. "

Doesn’t look like the home lead test kits are the answer to safety in our children’s toys.

Alicia's News Interview on Fox 19

Alicia's interview with reporter Jill Eichhorn from Fox 19 news aired on December 29th. You can watch the two minute interview by visiting our home page - www.SmartToyChoice.com (link on the bottom right) to hear Alicia and Jill's comments about our personalized toy recall notification service.

Yet Another Recall Affects Our Family

As we finish opening our new toys for the holidays, a recall impacts our toys received LAST Christmas. Today the CPSC issued another recall that will require me to take the fifth toy away from my children this year. My 2 year old's favorite building blocks - the Read To Me Tot Tower by eeBoo was recalled today for a choking hazard. Only 170,000 Tot Towers were part of the recall so it will probably not make the nightly news. It is fortunate that through my work with SmartToyChoice, I knew to remove this toy from his toy chest.

Interview on WVXU

This morning I had the opportunity to be interviewed by Maryanne Zeleznik of WVXU. I had never been interviewed on radio. The opportunity to talk about SmartToyChoice.com was fantastic. But I selfishly really enjoyed the experience! Maryanne was very welcoming and kind, as was everyone I met at WVXU. The interview went very smoothly then I was off to take my kids to their swim lessons. What more could a mom ask for but a chance to talk about helping other parents with toy recalls and a great day at the pool?

The interview will air during Cincinnati Edition this Sunday, December 23rd at 7:00am. If you are in Cincinnati you can tune your radio to 91.7fm. Or listen online at www.WVXU.org during the broadcast or later from the Cincinnati Edition archives.

Tougher toy recall standards

Yesterday Governor Spitzer of New York called for the federal government to toughen its recall rules. New York state officials found recalled toys on store shelves in Albany and New York City. This is true across the country and online. The fact is recalls are voluntary, not mandatory. Retailers are not required to check their inventory for recalled products or remove them from store shelves. Claire found a recalled toy at a toy store just a few weeks ago. It is important to be careful when purchasing a toy but we also need to be vigilant after a new toy comes home. The government's recall system works but only if parents have the information they need.