By Dave Lucas
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-856289.mp3
Albany, NY – This weekend, thousands of families across the Northeast will be holding garage sales in hopes of making a few extra bucks - the consumer protection agency warns "You could be passing on a danger to an unknowing family," as we hear in this report from Capital District Bureau Chief Dave Lucas
You might want to check your inventory before putting it out on the sidewalk for sale this weekend: As part its "Resale Roundup" initiative, the federal government is cracking down on secondhand sales of dangerous and defective products, including hazardous toys and other children's products. It is a crime to resell anything that's been recalled by its manufacturer. Don't think for a minute it doesn't apply to YOU - a 27-page Consumer Product Safety Commission resellers' handbook released earlier this year says, quote "Ignorance of the law is not an excuse" - As a secondhand seller, you must check your item against lists of recalls for thousands of products, some of them going back to the 1990s. You are required to KNOW the safety standards and make sure the items you're selling don't violate those standards. The new handbook, available at www.cpsc.gov, summarizes the law for everyday people who sell used products.
To kick off its Resale Roundup, which is being enforced under the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, the federal agency released a list of the 11 most dangerous previously recalled children's products. The oldest item on the federal recall list is the March 10, 1993, recall of 11,600 portable cribs sold as Playskool Travel-Lite Play Yards and made by Kolcraft, an Aberdeen, N.C., firm that's the nation's largest crib manufacturer. According to Consumer Reports, five million drop-side cribs have been recalled since 2007. It says there have also been 11 crib-related fatalities. Some of these cribs have turned up for resale at garage sales and on the internet. Consumer Reports found the recalled crib on Craigslist, selling for 40 dollars. Besides individuals holding yard sales, the law applies to thrift or consignment stores, charities, flea markets and people who sell on auction Web sites, like eBay.
The Federal agency is already working with eBay, to flag auction items subject to manufacturers' recalls. There's an Internet surveillance unit monitoring Craigslist and similar websites for recalled goods. If the agency discovers that a recalled product HAS been sold online, it will attempt to locate and inform the buyer. Tracy Shelton is a consumer attorney for NYPIRG in Manahattan: she says aspects of this legislation are problematic, putting an ureasonable burdern on average consumers.
I checked with several area flea markets: most of the people were spoke with were unaware of the new rules, one operator said he had not received any notice from the government... another told me she does NOT sell toys at her facility.
MOST DANGEROUS RECALLED PRODUCTS:
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has launched a drive to prevent used goods that have been recalled from being resold. Among thousands of recalled products on the market, the federal agency has identified 11 that it considers very dangerous for children:
Playskool Travel-Lite Play Yards (portable cribs), March 10, 1993
Baby Trend Home and Roam (portable cribs), Dec. 19, 1994
Evenflo Happy Camper Play Yards (portable cribs), June 25, 1997
Baby Express Portable Cribs and Play Yards, Feb. 28, 2001
Magnetix Magnetic Building Sets, March 31, 2006
Polly Pocket dolls with magnets, Nov. 21, 2006
Easy-Bake Ovens, July 19, 2007
Simplicity Drop Side Cribs, Sept. 21, 2007
Simplicity Bassinets, Aug. 27, 2008
Hill Sportswear hooded drawstring sweatshirts, Feb. 12, 2009
Evenflo Envision high chairs, April 2, 2009
ON THE WEB
Details and information about the new law and other product recalls.
NYS Dept of Health toy recalls
US Consumer Product Safety Commission
After millions of lead-tainted toys from China were recalled in 2007, Congress enacted the sweeping and complicated Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act in August 2008. It took effect in February. But the toys involved routinely show up at garage sales.
Three tainted toys, have paint that exceeded the federal standard of lead levels allowed in paint, which is 600 parts per million (0.06 wt% lead). The three toys are:
1) "Army Force" Car Set, which are green and black, Lot # ES35146, UPC Code 6010785146, and are imported by Encore Sales, Concord, Ontario, Canada;
2) "Sprite Tractor Trailer" toys, which are green and orange and have no identifying information on the packaging; and
3) "Wrestle Mania" action figures, which are multicolored and distributed by AA of America from New Jersey.