The Toy Industries of Europe has raised concerns about the safety of toys being sold on online marketplaces, such as Amazon, in the region. They conducted a study which found that 80% of the toys purchased from third-party sellers did not meet EU safety standards and posed potential dangers to children. The organization is calling for online marketplaces to take more responsibility for ensuring the safety of products sold on their platforms to prevent the influx of unsafe toys.
The toys examined in the study were sold by both EU and non-EU traders on various online marketplaces, including Chinese platforms Temu and Shein in addition to Amazon. Amazon has stated that they have measures in place to prevent unsafe products from being listed on their site, and they have removed the products in question while investigating. Temu and Shein also emphasized the importance of product quality and consumer safety, and both companies have taken action to remove non-compliant products from their platforms.
As part of their research, Toy Industries of Europe conducted independent laboratory tests on the toys they purchased. They found several safety issues, such as a baby teething toy that could break into small parts, posing a choking hazard, and slime products containing dangerous levels of a chemical called boron. TIE noted that the study results do not represent the safety of all toys available on these platforms, as they did not purchase any toys from well-known brands.
The European Union has strict toy safety regulations, but toymakers from outside the EU are not always subject to these rules when selling products via online marketplaces. Six of the 10 online marketplaces studied, including Amazon, have signed the EU’s Product Safety Pledge, committing to ensuring the safety of goods sold on their platforms by third parties. TIE is urging EU leaders to hold online marketplaces legally responsible for the safety of products listed by third parties to improve consumer protection.
In the United States, regulators are also concerned about the safety of products sold online. The Consumer Product Safety Commission recently called for an investigation into Shein and Temu over the potential sale of dangerous baby and toddler products. This highlights a global issue of ensuring consumer safety when purchasing goods from online platforms and the importance of holding companies accountable for the products they sell to protect consumers, particularly children, from harm.
