Holiday shopping is in full swing. But before you place that online order, you may want to find out what products safety organizations say you should watch out for.
Toy researchers at the U.S. PIRG Education Fund issued the 35th annual Trouble in Toyland report.
The U.S. PIRG Education Fund says it “is an independent, non-partisan group that works for consumers and the public interest.”
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were at least nine toy-related deaths in 2020 in kids 14 years old and younger. Three were caused by a balloon while a fourth was due to a rubber ball that blocked an airway. Other deaths involved stuffed animals, choking on a small part or suffocation in a toy box.
In addition to the deaths, there were about 198,000 toy-related injuries in 2020 that needed hospital treatment, the CPSC said.
They said there are six different types of toys or toy dangers that parents should be aware of.
- Knockoff toys
- Secondhand toys
- Toys with ingestion risks
- Toys with choking hazards
- Noisy toys
- Smart toys
Knockoff toys
They may look like the real deal, but knockoff toys are usually made for less money than the original item, the group said. They also can be made of “faulty materials” and have not undergone safety testing. There are more than 100 safety standards the U.S. requires toys to meet, according to the U.S. PIRG.
Consumers are being told they should check the seller, price and reviews on a product before buying them.
Secondhand toys
Second-hand toys can pose a danger because they may have been recalled, but are still available to be purchased. The buyer may not know that a toy has been recalled, and depending on the age of the item, it could have toxic chemicals in higher amounts than are permitted, according to the Trouble in Toyland report.
If you’re looking to buy secondhand, check saferproducts.gov, a site set up by the CPSC, to see if there are any complaints about the item.
Ingestion risks
Toys that have small magnets or small batteries could be dangerous if a child swallows them. Zen Magnets were recalled earlier this year but similar products are still on the market, U.S. PIRG said.
If you have small children, U.S. PIRG says you should avoid buying products with high-powered magnets. If a toy has a button or coin battery make sure the battery compartment has a screw and is child proof.
Choking hazards
Not only is ingestion of small parts dangerous, but larger parts that could still be swallowed could block a child’s airflow. Choking hazards, according to the group, are the biggest danger when it comes to toys, the Trouble in Toyland report said. Make sure that the toys you are buying are labeled with a warning if they have small pieces.
Before giving a toy to a child 3 or younger, see if the smaller parts can fit in a toilet paper tube. If they do, they can be swallowed by a child.
Noisy toys
Out of five toys tested by the U.S. PIRG, four were shown to have high levels of sound that could potentially hurt a child’s hearing.
You can muffle the toy by putting duct tape over the speaker, or if all else fails, take the batteries out.
Smart toys
The danger for smart toys isn’t necessarily physical ones like the other issues. Instead, smart toys could pose a security risk either by the data that is collected or because a hacker could potentially gain access and allow a child to be exposed to inappropriate content.
Before buying a smart toy, research it so you know how it works and how a child will interact with it. You can search online to see if anyone is worried about the toy’s privacy.
The Toy Association Response
In a statement, The Toy Association disputed some of the report’s findings. “All toys sold in the United States, no matter where they are produced, must conform to rigorous safety standards and laws,” The Toy Association said, adding that the country’s “toy safety requirements are among the strictest in the world.”
The Toy Association said that some of the items in the report had been voluntarily recalled and that some items listed in the report were not actual toys.
Noting the concerns about counterfeit toys, The Toy Association offered a recommendation for parents:
“The Toy Association agrees that counterfeit toys lurking online have the potential to be unsafe and should be avoided at all costs. The Toy Association continues to urge parents to shop only from reputable brands and sellers, whether in stores or online, whose toys comply with over 100 different safety standards and tests required by law.”
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