Watch for baby product recalls

In this article, you’ll find answers to questions like:

1. Where can I check for recalls?
2. Where else, outside of my home, should I check?
3. How do I report dangerous products?

Do you know that baby gear you used with older children or received as a hand-me-down may have been recalled because of serious safety concerns? Thankfully, trained experts investigate accidents and test baby products that parents have reported for safety concerns. Here are tips to keep all kids safer.

 1. WHERE CAN I CHECK FOR RECALLS?

Visit the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to scroll through a continually updated list of recalled items, read important news and helpful safety tips, and subscribe to daily alerts about infant/child recalls.

Safe Kids Worldwide offers the option of subscribing to a comprehensive monthly recall email that includes additional info from the Food and Drug Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 

2. WHERE ELSE, OUTSIDE MY HOME, SHOULD I CHECK?

When you discover a recalled item, try to think if you’ve seen it anywhere else, says Kathryn Wall, Safe Kids Palm Beach County program director.

“Babysitters’ homes, playrooms at your gym or place of worship, daycare centers, or friends’ garages may also have recalled products,” says Wall.

3. HOW TO REPORT DANGEROUS PRODUCTS?

The best way to protect children is to report dangerous products, says James Butscher, one of three federal safety commission investigators covering Florida. He visits hotels, furniture rental companies, and resale stores in Palm Beach County to educate personnel and search for recalled baby items.

“When the public lets us know of a concern with an item, the commission can immediately investigate and send it to the National Product Testing and Evaluation Center so that someone else’s child isn’t unintentionally harmed,” Butscher says.

Parents and caregivers can call the commission’s hotline at 800-638-2772 or visit SaferProducts.gov to browse recalls and report an unlisted and potentially unsafe product in less than five minutes. Or call Butscher at 240-429-4036 or email him at JButscher@cpsc.gov.

• James Butscher, federal investigator, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

• Kathryn Wall, program director, Safe Kids Palm Beach County