WITH Christmas just weeks away, a senior Interior Ministry official yesterday urged shoppers to be vigilant when out buying toys for their children.
Although Competition and Consumer Department inspectors carry out frequent spot checks on all products, severe staff shortages prevent them from visiting all toy stores and testing every single product.
In the circumstances, Marios Droushiotis said it was important for consumers to be aware of what to look for when out buying gifts for children.
Toy manufacturers had to follow specific EU health and safety guidelines, he said. Three aspects are involved: one deals with the toy’s actual components, the second measures its flammability levels and the third assesses its chemical substance content.
“Toys should not be made with sharp points, have long laces that children can tie around their necks or contain small objects for under three-year-olds. They should also be tested for their breakability levels. In other words, they have to be dropped from a certain height before they break, and once they do, they should not shatter into little pieces with sharp edges,” he said.
“Next, materials such as doll’s clothes or hair should not be highly flammable, so that if a child sets fire to it, it will not spread, but instead burn out.
“And thirdly, chemicals used in the production of different toys’ colours should not be toxic or harmful when they come into contact with children; whether it be through their smell, touch or taste.”
An easy way to ensure that toy manufactures follow the EU safety specifications is to ensure they have the letters ‘CE’ printed on them. This was a EU safety approved seal that guaranteed the toys had been made following specific guidelines, he said.
Over and above these requirements, manufacturers are obliged to set minimum ages on their toys and to include relevant safety information and instructions. This information has to then be translated into clear and user-friendly Greek before hitting the market, he stressed. Any other additional language used is optional.
Packaging must also include the importer’s name and the manufacturer’s trade name or trademark, he said. “This is so that we can trace back where and who it came from if there is a problem.”
Failure to comply with any of the above was illegal and could lead to the imposition of a maximum £1,000 fine and/or a year in jail, he warned.
“No one has actually been sent to jail before, but fines of £300-£500 have been set,” said Droushiotis.
If a toy is deemed dangerous, it is removed from the market and consumers who may have already bought it are warned to return it.
“They usually get their money back because the importers want to avoid legal action,” he said.
Toys that have in the past been removed from the market following laboratory spot checks are mainly battery-operated dolls because they have sharp edges and flammable materials, as well as long laces, he said.
He said there were no statistics of accidents involving children.
“There have been incidences of children swallowing objects, cutting their fingers on sharp edges or scratching themselves with their toys. By next year the Health Ministry plans to keep a recording of how and why children’s accidents occur so that we will have a better picture of the situation.”
He said parents also had a role in ensuring children were kept safe. Warnings that recommended adult supervision or specified that toys should be used by over-five year olds should be adhered to, he insisted.
“Instructions are there for a reason and toys could contain small loose objects that parents aren’t aware of and that a younger child will more than likely put into its mouth,” said Droushiotis.
He added that by next year the situation would be much improved, since all toys would undergo full laboratory investigations, which involved testing their safety levels beyond what could be seen by the naked eye.
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