U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission releases new safety standard for water toys

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking to improve safety standards for water toys. The primary product targeted by the rule is neck buoys, which have been reported to pose a serious drowning risk to young children. The rule establishes multiple testing and performance requirements for these products to ensure the highest level of safety.

conditioning

The rule would require manufacturers of these products to subject them to conditioning procedures to ensure their durability. These include exposing products to various temperatures, chlorine and salt water environments, and ultraviolet light.

minimum standards

To prevent accidental flooding and restrain system failures, the rule proposes additional minimum standards.

Buoyancy requirements

The committee proposed requiring all neck buoys to have a minimum upward buoyancy equal to or greater than 30 percent of the expected load-bearing capacity. Additionally, the rule requires that inherently buoyant neck buoys may not lose more than 5% of their initial buoyancy after 24 hours of submersion.

constraint system

To reduce the possibility of restraint system failure on neck floats that could cause a child to slip out of the product, the new Rules Committee imposes requirements on the release pattern of the fastening mechanism and the overall mechanical integrity of the restraint system.

Marking, labeling and labeling requirements

The CPSC noted in the notice that existing neck buoy safety information is of limited effectiveness in preventing submersion hazards. The rule requires new product warnings, including:

• description of hazard;
• Information about the consequences of exposure to hazards; and
• Instructions on appropriate hedging behavior

The rule also provides guidance on label content and required explanatory literature.

What importers should do

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has opened a comment period for interested parties to weigh in on the proposed rule. Submission deadline is January 21, 2025. Interested parties should make their voices heard by submitting comments.

Additionally, the CPSC warned against hoarding of imported neck buoys until the rule is finalized. Companies are instructed to avoid importing non-compliant products in specified months at a rate that exceeds 105% of the base period. The base period is the average monthly manufacturing or import volume during the last 13 months preceding the month in which the final rule is promulgated.

Diaz Trade Law can help importers submit comments and determine how these new requirements will impact their business. Please contact us at info@diaztradelaw.com or call 305-456-3830.