Child Product Safety Group Urges Better Notification of Recalls to Consumers

Only 10% of children’s products recalled in 2012 were actually corrected, replaced or returned, according to a Feb. 18 report from consumer safety group Kids in Danger. Products that remained in circulation after a recall was issued in 2012 caused 584 incidents and 39 injuries, said the report. “When manufacturers still have control of a recalled product, in their warehouses or with a retailer, the success rate is higher, said the report. “But once a product is in consumer hands the success rate plummets.”

Overall, the number of recalls increased 18 percent from 2012 to 2013, said Kids in Danger. While reported incidents fell by 38%, and injuries dropped 16%, deaths from recalled children’s products rose from 9 to 11 in 2013, it said. Four of those 11 deaths were caused by children’s furniture, and seven by nursery products. About 75% of incidents, 85% of injuries, and all of the deaths occurred before the recall was issued. “While the decreases in the number of reported incidents, injuries and deaths prior to recall are a noted step in the right direction; these numbers are still too high” said Kids in Danger. “On average it takes fourteen reports of serious design flaws and failures and two injuries to pull dangerous products from the shelf.”

Although many manufacturers are active on social media, websites like Twitter and Facebook are not used enough to convey recall information to consumers, said Kids in Danger. Of the 63 manufacturers who had Facebook pages, only nine used them to announce recalls. Similarly, only 8 out of 63 used Twitter. “Social media is remarkably under-utilized for spreading recall notices,” said Kids in Danger. “The overwhelming majority of manufacturers do not utilize social media to broadcast their recalls even though it is a well-recognized marketing platform with the ability to reach many more affected consumers.”

“[The Consumer Product Safety Commission], manufacturers, retailers and consumers need to focus more attention on getting recalled products fixed or out of the hands of consumers,” concluded Kids in Danger. “Once products are in consumer‘s homes, recall participation rates are abysmal,” it said. “Manufacturers and the CPSC should work together to streamline the process for voluntary recalls so as to issue recalls before the majority of products reach consumers.” Kids in Danger recently submitted comments to CPSC urging the agency to adopt a proposal to make voluntary recalls plans legally binding (see 14021817).