KID participates in live Webcast today

Live Web chat Monday-from the Chicago Sun Times:

Please join The Fixer at noon (CDT) today at as we chat with Nancy Cowles, executive director of Kids in Danger, a Chicago-based organization that has been on the front lines of legislation to make children's products safer.

You remember the scares last year about lead paint on toys and high-strength magnets that toddlers were swallowing? Consumer groups are hoping to finally give the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission the teeth it needs to stop products like these from reaching our stores.

We'll also have a link afterward where people can view the rerun online.

President signs CPSC reform bill

President Bush signed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act this morning. This Act is the legacy of the countless children, including Danny Keysar - whose parents founded Kids In Danger - who have been killed or injured by unsafe children's products and toys. It is to honor their memories that KID will work to ensure the full implementation of the bill as quickly as possible. Here's more from the coalition of consumer groups.

The Internet: Recirculation of Recalled Children’s Products

Selling and buying products online is becoming more common every year. Unfortunately, however, this convenient mode of shopping has created a new kind of market where previously recalled children’s products can reach consumers, thereby presenting a risk of injury to children.

Last year, many high profile toy manufacturers recalled millions of toys due the hazards they pose, however, some of these toys are still available via internet. Mega Brand, for example, recalled about 4 million of its Magnetix toys due to small magnets falling out and children swallowing them. The toys were responsible for 34 incidents, 4 injuries, and 1 death; yet, some of these recalled Magnetix toys are still being sold on EBay. Today you can find the Rose Art Magnetic X-treme Combo Set and Micro Set on EBay, which Mega Brand recalled over a year ago!

So how do such high profile recalls make it to the internet? Well, quiet easily. Many products are not marked as recalled or defective and unless a consumer knows about a recall, they have little way of knowing that the product they are selling or purchasing for their child is dangerous. Further, popular online auctions sites, like EBay, claim that they are not equipped to regulate the millions of new and used items for sale. While EBay does provide a tip sheet and links to a recall database, it does not have its own inventory for consumers. Moreover, the auction site has little legal liability for products sold on its site.

The presence of recalled children’s products on online auction sites is unacceptable and warrants a need for change. To reduce the resale of recalled children’s products parents need to check their desired purchase against recall lists, manufacturers need to obtain recalled products from homes so that they are not resold, and online auction sites need to investigate and post recalls while also requiring sellers to sell only non-recalled items. Combined, these efforts can reduce the recirculation of recalled products and work to keep children safe.

Playground Safety Report

The Center for Justice and Democracy recently released a new report targeting playground safety, Kids ‘N Safe Play: Regulation, Litigation and Playground Safety. The report examines how past playground-related incidents spurred the evolution of steel structures on asphalt to more creative and safe equipment placed on soft ground coverings. Their release emphasizes the message that although there has been progress towards children’s safety, recent high rates of playground-related injuries among children suggests a need for more to be done on the playground safety front. Such movement requires ignoring corporate groups that make false claims that new, safe playgrounds are “bad” and “boring”.

Babies"R"Us posts Jardine Crib recall info and hotline

Since the recall of the 320,000 Jardine cribs six weeks ago, Toys"R"Us and Babies"R"Us have relied on Jardine to interact with consumers on the recall process. But since the cribs were only sold through Babies"R"Us and can only be replaced by cribs from Babies"R"Us, consumers have looked to the chain to help them with the confusing process. From a Jardine hotline that drops callers repeatedly, to low inventory of replacement cribs in the stores, to confusion at the branch level of what the store policies are on online purchases and refunds on the vouchers; Jardine crib owners are growing frustrated. Now Babies"R"Us has posted the voucher policy on their website and announced a hotline (973-617-5000) for crib owners who need assistance.

In the meantime, please continue to spread the word of this recall to any parents or caregivers and if you have the crib, don't let your child sleep in it -- even if it means weeks in a portable crib or playyard. The cribs are unsafe. Again, recommendations for your baby's sleeping in the meantime:

• If you can afford it, purchase a new crib online or at a Babies”R”Us store and get reimbursed when your voucher arrives.
• For newborns and babies not yet pushing up or rolling over, they can stay in a bassinet
• Older babies (close to 2) can be moved to the crib mattress on the floor of a childproofed nursery
• Other babies can sleep in a portable crib or playpen. Make sure it hasn’t been recalled and meets current safety standards (JPMA seal). This means it was tested for use as a sleep environment.
• Never put a baby to sleep on couches, chairs, strollers or water beds; or with another child or in a sleep environment with soft bedding.
  
• If you need help to secure a safe sleeping product for your baby while you wait for your new crib, contact the CPSC public affairs department at 301-504-7908. They are working with nonprofits to supply safe portable cribs as needed.