The Spotlight on Fidget Spinners:
>The Rise of the Fidget Spinner and the Fall of the Well-Managed Fad
August 15, 2017, The New York Times
This spring, when Christine Osborne started getting phone calls about a new playground must-have — the fidget spinner — she was apprehensive instead of excited. A successful toy store owner, she has seen toy fads fast growing appeal spread like wild fire before with Beanie Babbies. ‘‘Everything is different now,’’ Osborne said. ‘‘My goal was to get in and get out as fast as I could.’’ Now, she’s moving on to the next fad “squishies’’ — squishable toys that are also (questionably) marketed as attention aids. She thinks the new fad will last at least a few months.
>CPSC: Fidget Spinner Business Guidance
August, 2017, cpsc.gov
What is a fidget spinner? What requirements must the product meet, and what certification is required for manufacturers and importers of this product? The CPSC has set up a business information center to provide guidance to businesses handling this latest toy fad.
>CPSC Blogger: Fidget Spinner Safety
August 10, 2017, cpsc.gov/blog
Fidget spinners have become extremely popular with people of all ages, including young children. Fidget spinners are typically designed with a center bearing with weights around the perimeter and are spun in a person’s hand. There are many different kinds of fidget spinners available in stores and online. In light of reported incidents with fidget spinners, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) offers some safety tips.
Prop 65 Strategies for 2018: Product safety group webinar focus on compliance and audit methods
August, 2017, Society of Product Safety Professionals
A California law firm weighs in on new developments under California’s Proposition 65 and how they apply to individual companies. Viewers of this free webinar from Society of Product Safety Professionals, in cooperation with Saint Louis University’s Emerson Leadership Institute, will also learn about proven approaches to develop and implement effective compliance strategies
Impact of the FOIA Amendments on your company
August 11, 2017, JDSupra, (Miles & Stockbridge P.C.)
The new FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, which was signed into law on June 30, 2016, will impact disclosure of documents in the possession of the CPSC pursuant to FOIA Requests. Because most FOIA Requests come from plaintiffs’ law firms, companies are most likely to receive multiple FOIA Requests in connection with CPSC Recall Files as well as Epidemiologic Investigation Reports, Consumer Product Incident Reports and Internet Form Complaints relating to recalled or frequently litigated products.
Perspective: Recalls happen. Now what?
August 14, 2017, Quality Assurance Magazine
Since the Food Safety Modernization Act became a law in 2011, FDA does not have to wait for a company to initiate a voluntary recall. Rather, it now has the authority to require food manufacturers to recall products if there is credible evidence to believe that the food presents a threat of serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals. Understanding the individual elements that comprise an effective product recall program is to every company’s benefit.
Trump’s EPA May Be Weakening Chemical Safety Law
August 16, 2017, Scientific American
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released controversial new rules for evaluating a chemical’s risk. One of the most controversial parts of the framework is how the EPA changed a key term known as the “conditions of use.” It defines which applications of a chemical the EPA will examine in risk evaluations. Environmental advocates and the new leadership at the EPA do not agree on how to interpret this term.
India: Gov’t aims to protect consumer, plans regulator for direct selling cos
August 16, 2017, Business Standard
The Consumer Protection Bill of 2015, which replaces India’s Consumer Protection Act of 1986, seeks to widen the ambit and proposes to set up an executive agency to be known as the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA). The CCPA seeks to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers, intervene when necessary to prevent consumer detriment arising from unfair trade practices and initiate class action including enforcing refunds, and the recall and return of products. The CCPA seems to fill an institutional void in the current regulatory regime.
Feedback wanted on proposed changes to product safety regulations
August 14, 2017, Channel NewsAsia
SPRING Singapore is seeking public feedback on proposed changes to product safety regulations. These amendments to the Consumer Protection (Safety Requirements) Regulations (CPSR) and the Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (Conformity Assessment) Regulations (SPIBR) are meant to ensure that these regulations take into account new products and technologies in the market. Under the CPSR, certain categories of household goods and appliances have to meet specific safety standards and get a safety mark from SPRING before they can be sold in Singapore. Proposed changes to the CPSR include broadening the scope of product categories and removing outdated products from categories.
Learning from the Grenfell Tower Tragedy
August 8, 2017, voltimum.co.uk
The tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire highlighted the deep issues faced by social housing in the UK and sparked an outcry of discussion. This, coupled with the fact that the tower had been blighted with electrical issues for many years, raises serious concerns about the state of electrical safety in rented housing across the UK. NAPIT have long campaigned for electrical safety and are intent on raising awareness by outlining key ways of ensuring electrical safety in order to prevent future disasters.
