Whirlpool Agrees To Pay $11.5 Million Civil Penalty For Failure To Immediately Report Glass Cooktops Posing Burn And Fire Hazards
August 24, 2023, cpsc.gov
The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that Whirlpool Corp., of Benton Harbor, Michigan, has agreed to pay an $11,500,000 civil penalty. The settlement resolves CPSC’s charges that Whirlpool knowingly failed to immediately report to CPSC, as required by law, that 17 models of its JennAir, KitchenAid and Whirlpool brand electric radiant heat cooktops contained a defect that could create a substantial product hazard and created an unreasonable risk of serious injury to consumers. Beginning in November 2017 and continuing into 2019, Whirlpool received numerous reports from consumers that cooktop surface elements turned on by themselves. Despite possessing information that reasonably supported the conclusion that the cooktops contained a defect, Whirlpool did not immediately report to the Commission.
Commissioner Statements:
Chair Alexander Hoehn-Saric
Commissioner Mary T. Boyle
Commissioner Richard Trumka
Federal Staffers Recommend First Safety Requirements For Nursing Pillows After Dozens Of Infant Deaths
August 23, 2023, NBC News
The Consumer Product Safety Commission staff recommended the first federal requirements to make nursing pillows safer and discourage caregivers from setting babies down on the pillows to sleep. The recommendation cites dozens of deaths associated with the popular infant product. The staff recommended requiring nursing pillows to be “sufficiently firm that the product is unlikely to conform to an infant’s face.” The staff also recommended that the U-shaped pillows have openings wide enough to avoid restricting infants’ head movements which could cut off airflow.
How To Get People To Accept A Tough Decision
April 19, 2028, Harvard Business Review
Every leader has to make tough decisions that have consequences. When you’re faced with a tough call, consider two features that often make these decisions so difficult: uncertainty and value complexity, or the notion that any choice will compromise your values. To overcome these issues, there are several things you can do. For example, to reduce the uncertainty in a decision, you should challenge any either/or assumptions you’ve made. Explain that you are in a bad situation where any decision you make will harm someone. You don’t wish negative consequences on anyone, but it’s impossible to avoid.
UK Agency: Over 80% Of Online Marketplace Products Fail In Safety Checks
August 24, 2023, Evening Standard
More than 80% of items bought from online marketplaces in a government testing program have failed safety checks. This has led to concerns the UK has become a “dumping ground” for unsafe products. The Government’s Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) tested 2,260 products sold via online marketplaces between October 2021 and September 2022. The tests results showed that 1,832 (81%) failed to meet safety standards. The product category with the highest rate of non-compliance was toys, closely followed by small mains powered electricals.
CPSC Says These Gel Memory Foam Mattresses Do Not Meet Fire Safety Standards
August 24, 2023, PennLive
The federal safety agency said that people who own a certain brand of gel memory foam mattresses should stop using them because they do not meet flammability standards. The Consumer Product Safety Commission said certain Classic Brands Holdings Cool Gel Ventilated Memory Foam mattresses “pose a fire hazard and fail to meet the mandatory federal flammability standard for mattresses.” The mattresses were sold online at Amazon, Walmart, Wayfair, The Home Depot, Macy’s and Target from March 2021 through October 2022. The importer, Classic Brands Holdings LLC, of Columbia, Maryland, is going out of business and is unable to conduct a recall.
Canada: BNQ Publishes New Standards For Products With Recycled Plastic Content
August 24, 2023, Packaging-Gateway
Canada’s central standardization and certification body Bureau de normalization du Québec (BNQ) has published its new standards for products with recycled plastic content. The standard, referred to as ‘CAN/BNQ 3840-100 Recycled Plastic Content Products’, has been introduced to guarantee the content of recycled plastic content in new products in Canada. Through this ruling, the BNQ intends to address the requirements of Canadian consumers, industry members and regulatory authorities. The newly designated National Standard of Canada (NSC) is applicable to all domestic organizations that carry out plastic recycling, sorting, processing and transformation work.
American Home Furnishings Association Spotlights New Voluntary Safety Standards For Tip Restraint Devices
August 23, 2023, JD Supra
Customer safety related to preventing tip-over accidents is a top priority for furniture manufacturers and federal regulators alike. In April 2023 the ASTM 2057-23 voluntary standard became mandatory when the CPSC determined it met the requirements of the STURDY Act. The standard applies to dressers, wardrobes, armoires and other clothing storage units (CSUs). However, even as companies prepare to comply with this new federal standard, they should not overlook a related ASTM voluntary standard for tip restraint devices (TRDs).
Mom Calls For Water Beads To Be Banned After Daughter Died After Accidentally Eating One
August 23, 2023, Daily Mail
A Wisconsin mother has called for water beads to be banned as bath toys following the tragic death of her 10-month-old daughter when she accidentally ate one without her parents’ knowledge. Esther Jo Bethard, the youngest of five children, died on July 7 after being taken ill the day before. Her parents are now pushing for change to enforce restrictions over the sale of water beads as bath toys to ensure no other family goes through the same tragic incident.
Apple Backs California’s ‘Right To Repair’ Bill In Major Policy Shift
August 24, 2023, Fox 5 San Diego
Apple is now supporting a California bill that would require electronic and appliance manufacturers to provide product owners with tools and services to repair damaged items. The bill would specially require manufacturers that sell products for more than $100 to make replacement guides, parts and tools available for at least three years after the manufacture date, regardless of whether the three-year period exceeds the product’s warranty period, according to the bill’s text. The company’s latest move of support comes after its initial decision to oppose the proposed legislation.
Big Tech Braces For EU Digital Services Act Regulations
August 24, 2025, Reuters
More than a dozen of the world’s biggest tech companies face unprecedented legal scrutiny, as the European Union’s sweeping Digital Services Act (DSA) imposes new rules on content moderation, user privacy and transparency. A host of internet giants – including Meta’s Facebook and Instagram platforms, Apple’s online App Store, and a handful of Google services face new obligations in the EU. These include preventing harmful content from spreading, banning or limiting certain user-targeting practices and sharing some internal data with regulators and associated researchers.
