Nine Companies Pay Penalty For Lead In Toys

Greg Webb — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 08:00:00 GMT

As punishment for violating the federal lead paint ban, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced nine children’s product manufacturers, importers and sellers, including Dollar General and Michael’s, have agreed to pay more than $500,000 in civil penalties. These penalties settle the allegations that the companies knowingly manufactured, imported, or sold toys and/or other children’s products with paint or surface coatings that contained high levels of lead. The high levels of lead found in the affected toys violated federal law due to the health risks lead poses in children.

In 1978, a federal ban was passed that prohibited children’s products from having more than .06 percent lead (by weight) in paints or surface coatings. The products involved in the settlement were recalled in 2007 and 2008, and include such items as pencil pouches, sunglasses, children’s metal jewelry, and Halloween baskets. Tests showed that the paint or surface coatings on these items contained lead in excess of .06 percent by weight. One firm even found products that contained surface coatings of nearly 60 percent lead.

It is unfortunate that these penalties are not higher. They amount to less than a slap on the wrist for these companies, whose conduct is unacceptable. Hopefully, most of the conduct was just grossly negligent, and not a true, wilfull violation of the law.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Webb

Mattel and Fisher-Price Fined $2.3 Million for Lead Toy Hazard

Greg Webb — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:09:25 GMT

Mattel Inc. and its subsidiary, Fisher-Price, have agreed to pay $2.3 million in civil penalties to the United States for importing and selling toys with excessive levels of lead, and for violations of the federal lead paint ban. The CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) has provisionally accepted the penalty settlement. The CPSC announced on June 5, 2009, that the toymakers had knowingly violated a 30 year-old ban on lead paint in toys. Both Mattel and Fisher-Price deny knowingly violating the ban.

In 2007, approximately 95 different Fisher-Price and Mattel toys were found to have excessivle levels of lead. Lead that is ingested by young children can result in lead-related illnesses.

Mattel reportedly imported as many as 900,000 toys in 2006 and 2007 that had excessive lead, including the "Sarge" toy car and Barbie accessories.

Fisher-Price is alleged to have imported up to 1.1 million such toys in the same years, including the Bongo Band, GEOTRAX locomotive, and Go Diego Go Rescue Boat toys.

The civil penalty agreed to by the toymakers is the highest ever for the "importation or distribution in commerce of a regulated product".

Unfortunately, in this writer's opinion, this civil penalty, while a step in the right direction by the CPSC, and encouraging in that regard, is little more than a light slap on the wrist for Mattel and Fisher-Price. It is almost like paying a toll to proceed down the highway of profits over safety. This is further evidence for the argument to strengthen the CPSC's enforcement arm, and against preemption of any sort for state tort claims made by those legitimately injured by these defective toys.

For more information on this issue, please visit: www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09237.html

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Greg Webb

Charlottesville Personal Injury Lawyer - penalties

Nine Companies Pay Penalty For Lead In Toys

Mattel and Fisher-Price Fined $2.3 Million for Lead Toy Hazard