Exercise caution when choosing toys for children: SPRING Singapore
File photo of soft toys. Photo: AFP
SINGAPORE — More toys that could potentially hurt children have been making their way to stores. Safety authority SPRING Singapore found 29 of them this year, up from 11 last year and just two in 2013.
As the holiday season approaches, it is urging gift-buyers to be more careful when choosing toys for children.
The 29 toys found to be dangerous were all taken off the shelves. Some problems include rough edges, small parts that can cause choking or high lead content.
ENSURING YOUR CHILD IS SAFE
One way of protecting children is to read the labels on the packaging, to make sure toys are age-appropriate. For kids under the age of three, toys should be larger than a toilet paper roll. If not, it is dangerous as they can easily choke.
They learn about their surroundings by putting things in their mouths, which is why toys for babies should be big enough for that not to happen.
Parents should also check for sharp edges or pointed surfaces, presence of toxic elements and whether the toy has been recalled. They are also encouraged to buy well-made toys that can withstand rough play, and to try them at the store before making a purchase.
What is also important is close supervision, said SPRING. It urges parents to get into the habit of putting toys away after play, as this reduces the risk of injury. Broken toys should also be repaired or thrown away.
Shops, too, have a role to play to make sure toys they sell meet safety standards.
“When we approach the manufacturer, we want to see evidence. (We ask) where are your certificates, can we have a PDF of all the certificates that you’ve done for testing of this toy, that toy, (and) make sure that all the certificates are in order,” said The Better Toy Store’s Managing Director Susan Tay.
Responding to media queries, SPRING said it conducts random checks regularly to detect unsafe products. Some areas that it looks into when testing toys are small parts that could cause choking, chemicals like lead which can be found in toy coatings and making sure there are labels showing which age group the toy is suitable for.
It said toys sold in Singapore must meet international safety standards, and it works with suppliers to pull risky toys off the shelves. It also ensures that toys which have been recalled elsewhere are not sold in Singapore.
It a toy if deemed to pose a danger, the authority can order the supplier to stop selling it, as well as inform the public of the risks.
Those who fail to comply can be fined up to S$10,000 or jailed for up to two years, or both. CHANNEL NEWSASIA
