US plans overhaul of toy safety

Toy safety is high on the political agenda in Europe and the US

Toy makers that do business with the US will be subject to stricter testing standards under tough new laws being debated in the Senate.

The law would pave the way for firms that breach safety law to face steep fines and even see management serve a jail term in the most extreme cases.

It would also enforce stringent testing standards proposed by the US toy industry body and the safety regulator.

Last year, millions of China-made toys were recalled amid safety fears.

Toxic toys

Worries about lead and other dangerous chemicals found in the paint, as well as small loose parts, prompted the recalls.

There were 61 toy recalls covering 25 million units for the year ending 30 September 2007, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

Mattel and its Fisher Price unit were the main culprits, with recalls of Chinese-made Sarge die-cast toys from the Pixar film Cars among others.

Nancy Nord, the acting chair of the CPSC, lashed out at toymakers and retailers for a lack of safety controls at the annual American International Toy Fair earlier.

She said self-regulation was the industry's duty.

Mandatory measures

A mandatory certification programme is now being developed by the US Toy Industry Association and the CPSC as part of the House of Representatives bill on consumer safety.

The plan provides for stricter procedures for analysing safety during the design and manufacturing of toys and the testing of finished products, as well as factory audits.

It would apply to the whole industry and not just the toy group's members, which include toy giants Mattel and Hasbro.

Toys R US and Wal-Mart have aready introduced their own quality controls that exceed Federal guidance on lead in surface paint and would require manufacturers to increase the use of independent laboratories to test their products.