January 2020 Consumer Product Recalls Analysis

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) Recalls Analysis

In January 2020, there were 17 recall notices issued for consumer products by the CPSC, whereas 13 recall notices were issued for December 2019. About a third of the recalls (five notices) were carried out by the CPSC in conjunction with Health Canada.

Durable nursery products accounted for 29% of the recalls, whereas ATVs accounted for 17% of the recalls. We’ve highlighted some of the recalls relevant for the softlines and hardlines industries below.

January 2020 – CPSC
Product	Reason/Hazard(s)
Children’s Sleepwear – Lounge Pants	The lounge pants fail to meet the flammability standard for children’s sleepwear that requires sleepwear to be either snug-fitting or flame resistant, posing a risk of burn injuries to children
Durable Nursery Products – 4 Inclined Sleep Products	Infant fatalities have been reported with other manufacturers’ inclined sleep products, after the infants rolled from their back to their stomach or side, or under other circumstances
Durable Nursery Products – Mini Stroller	Both of the stroller’s hinge joints can release and collapse under pressure, posing a fall hazard to children in the stroller
Furniture – Chairs	The chair leg may break, posing a fall hazard
Furniture – Stools	The foot support on the stool was improperly welded and can break, posing a fall hazard to consumers
Household Items – Mugs	The mugs are mislabeled as microwave safe, however if microwaved, the metallic print on the mug can spark, posing a fire hazard
Kitchen Accessories – Milk Bottles	The bottles can break unexpectedly during use, posing a laceration hazard
Toys – Tricycles	Paint on the product exceeds the federal lead paint ban and tricycle components contain levels of lead that exceed the federal lead content ban

Read more: https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls

Health Canada Recalls Analysis

In January 2020, there were 13 recall notices issued for consumer products by Health Canada, which was about half the number of recall notices issued for consumer products in December 2019 (25 recall notices).

There were two recalls for choking hazards in toys, two furniture recalls for fall hazards and one nursery safety gate recall for a chemical hazard. Other children’s products recalls of note were one for a laceration hazard in children’s backpacks and another for children’s bicycle baby seats for fall hazards. We’ve highlighted some of the recalls relevant for softlines and hardlines industries below.

January 2020 – Health Canada
Product	Reason/Hazard(s)
Children’s Apparel – Winter Hats	The loop fastener may detach and pose a choking hazard to children
Durable Nursery Products – Retractable Safety Gate	The surface coating applied on the metal tube of the gates contains barium in excess of allowable limits
Household Item – Mugs	The cups may crack or break, posing a burn hazard
Furniture – Chair	The chair leg may break posing a fall hazard
Furniture – Stool	A support bar on the stool can break, posing a fall and injury hazard
Toys – Bead Maze	The triangle piece of the shape sorter may in some cases be slightly too small, potentially posing a choking hazard
Toys – Plush Toy	The hard plastic nose of the plush toy may detach, posing a potential choking hazard to young children

EU RAPEX Recall Analysis

In January 2020, there were 96 relevant product recall alerts issued through the EU’s Rapid Alert System (RAPEX). Toys (56%) and clothing & fashion items (21%) accounted for the majority of the recalls, followed by childcare articles (9%), hobby and sports equipment (8%) and decorative items (6%). We’ve highlighted the recalled product categories and hazards below.

January 2020 – EU RAPEX
Product Categories	Reason/Hazard(s)
Childcare Articles	There were 8 recalls in January; 7 recalls were due to small parts that may present a choking hazard and the other was for a child's bicycle seat that has a buckle which may break during use
Clothing and Fashion Accessories	The were 8 recalls due to drawstrings and embellishments that do not meet the requirements of EN 14682 and pose an entrapment hazard 2 recalls were due to embellishments on infant garments that may become detached and cause a choking hazard A total of 3 recalls were chemical related recalls due to non-compliance with the REACH requirement on children’s garment of chromium VI non-compliance; with other chemical recalls for jewellery items that failed REACH requirements; 2 failures for cadmium and 2 for nickel release; 2 recalls for products that failed both lead and cadmium requirements; and one recall for REACH failure on cadmium, lead and nickel release content all on the same product
Decorative Items & Gadgets	There were 4 recalls in January on oil lamps that pose a risk of oil leaking, exposing the user or a child the oil, presenting a risk of poisoning, in addition the lamps did not comply with the safety standard EN 14059 There was also a chemical failure on a candle where the user is at risk of carbon monoxide poisoning A choking hazard recall was issued for a refrigerator magnet with small parts that can easily detach from the product
Sports and Hobby Equipment	There were 3 recalls on sports equipment (including a yoga may) containing SCCPs, which are restricted by the Persistent Organic Pollutant Regulation and pose a risk to human health and the environment There was a recall on a hoverboard and a chain ring for a cycle that were found to be defective, potentially resulting in injury to the user There were 2 further recalls for hoverboards and a motocross cycle which present a fire risk and could cause burns
Toys	There were 54 toy recalls in January, with more than half (27) due to small components that present choking hazards Most of the chemical failures were due to phthalate content in toy items (12 recalls); 6 recalls were for boron content in ‘slime’ type toys; and the remaining chemical related recall was due to of 5-Chloro-2-methyl-isothiazolin-3(2H)-one (CMI), 2-methylisothiazolin-3(2H)-one (MI), 1,2-benzoizotiazol-3(2H)-on (BIT) in finger paints Strangulation hazards were identified on toys with cords (3 items), including a dress-up item with a strap, which poses a strangulation risk, and the same garment also contains sequins, which pose a choking hazard Two recalls for injuries include a one for a toy with a retractable strap and one for a toy gun that contains a projectile, which is hazardous There was a recall for a rattle where the sound level produced by the toy is too high, which could lead to permanent or partial hearing loss One of the recalls was due to accessible batteries that could be ingested by a child, causing additional toxicological hazard