Amendment to mandatory standard for reduced fire-risk cigarettes
On 9 April 2009 the Trade Practices (Consumer Product Safety Standard) (Reduced Fire Risk Cigarettes) Regulations 2008 were amended to reduce the transition period that non-reduced fire-risk cigarettes will be available for sale from 12 to six months.
The amendment is to ensure that all cigarettes supplied in Australia will be reduced fire-risk compliant from 23 September 2010, well in advance of the 2010–11 bushfire season.
If you have any queries about the regulations or the recent amendment , call the ACCC's Product Safety Branch on (02) 6243 1231.
Call for reports on unsafe wooden cots
The ACCC is leading a campaign with fair trading agencies in South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland to encourage consumers and suppliers to help identify wooden cots with loose filler bars.
Complaint data indicates some brands of wooden cots purchased from 2007 onwards have drop sides that fail because their slats or filler bars are too short or varied in length, and they loosen and fall out.
It seems some manufacturers are relying excessively on glue and nails to compensate for the poor fit. As a result, joints are failing in some cots because the glue weakens over time or has been applied to the thin painted surfaces, rather than to wooden surfaces. It also seems that the wood being used may not be properly cured and has declined, making it more inclined to shrink and split at joints if slats become loose.
It is possible to see evidence of these problems on slats or filler bars on the ends and sides of wooden cots in a period of between three months and two years from the date of purchase.
Slats or filler bars on drop sides are more prone to loosening or separating from the rails because of the pressure of continual use. Older babies can exert extra pressure on the drop side by pushing, pulling, banging, jumping and leaning on it.
Loose or missing filler bars can create dangerous gaps that may trap a child’s head and cause strangulation, or cause a child to fall out of the cot and suffer serious head injuries and other fractures.
In one complaint, parents found their child lying on the floor surrounded by the broken parts of the drop side, which had collapsed completely. Fortunately the child was not injured.
The ACCC urges suppliers and consumers to check for these problems.
Consumers using new or second-hand wooden household cots should:
Vigorously shake the sides, ends and drop side of the empty cot to ensure no slats or filler bars are loose.
Check the places where the slats or filler bars are joined to the top and bottom rails to ensure the fit is tight and secure. If glue or nails have been used, ensure these materials are not failing or falling out.
Anyone who finds loose slats or bars, missing nails or failing glue on joints should:
Stop using the cot.
Call the ACCC Infocentre on 1300 302 502 to report the brand of the cot and where it was purchased.
Contact the retailer to report the problem.
Suppliers who are aware of wooden cots with these problems should also call the ACCC on 1300 302 502.
