With the coming of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a spokesman for the Customs and Excise Department today (September 20) reminded parents and guardians about the potential hazards of festive toys such as battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks when selecting such toys for children.
"In 2003, the department received two complaints about suspected unsafe toy lanterns, conducted 108 spot checks on various retailers supplying battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks with samples purchased for safety test," the spokesman said. As a result, one person was prosecuted for supplying unsafe toy lanterns and 19 toy suppliers were served with written warnings for supplying unsafe toy lanterns and light sticks under the Toys and Children's Product Safety Ordinance/Regulation.
"The major non-compliance of these samples were that they did not carry the required instructions on safe battery usage, such as 'Do not mix old and new batteries' and 'Do not mix alkaline, standard (carbon-zinc), or rechargeable (nickel-cadmium) batteries'. The battery compartment was not marked to show the correct battery polarity and voltage.
"Some samples were also found without the required identification markings on the packaging - the name and address of the local manufacturer, importer or supplier. The potential hazards posed by these non-compliant battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks included injuries like burns to body caused by battery overheating or leakage.
"In addition, common hazards of these festive toys also include choking on swallowing batteries or small loose parts; and laceration or puncture caused by exposed sharp edges or pointed projections. Continuous bending of light sticks may cause leakage of chemical contents. Hence, risks of injury are likely to be associated with irritation on skin or eyes," he said.
So far in 2004, the department has not received any complaint about suspected unsafe battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks. The department recently conducted 97 spot checks on various retailers supplying battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks. Fourteen models of battery-operated toy lanterns and seven models of light sticks were sent to the Government Laboratory for safety tests for compliance with the prescribed toys standards under the Toys and Children's Products Safety Ordinance as well as the requirements of bilingual safety warning and identification marking for toys under the Toys and Children's Products Safety Regulation.
"Of the 14 tested samples of battery-operated toy lanterns and seven light sticks, four lanterns and two light sticks passed the relevant prescribed safety standards," the spokesman said. However, eight lanterns did not carry the required instructions on safe battery usage such as "Do not mix old and new batteries" and "Do not mix alkaline, standard (carbon-zinc), or rechargeable (nickel-cadmium) batteries". The battery compartment was also not marked to show the correct battery polarity and voltage.
"The nine samples of toy lantern and five samples of light sticks were found without the identification markings, that is, the name and address of the local manufacturer, importer, or the supplier, on the packaging. One toy lantern sample failed to comply with the 'drop test' as small parts dropped out and sharp points were easily exposed, posing a laceration hazard to users." the spokesman added.
Customs will initiate investigations into the suppliers concerned. The department will prosecute and serve written warning to those companies and retailers for supplying unsafe battery-operated toy lanterns and light sticks to protect consumers' interests.
The Government Laboratory also confirmed that samples of battery-operated toy lanterns, which had sound-producing features, were found to have complied with the requirement of the peak emission sound pressure level prescribed in the current European Standard for toys that emit continuous sound. Of these 14 models, 12 were musical as well as battery-operated toy lanterns.
Despite this, parents are advised to be cautious when their children were playing these musical toys. Tips to guard against potential risks are as follows:
Ends/Monday, September 20, 2004