Snaps on Weeplay Kids/Carter's infant garments pose choking hazard

Carter’s Watch the Wear and Sleep ‘n Play Garments have a problem.  Well, at least 128,000 of them do.  The manufacturer, Weeplay Kids LLC, has received thirty reports of the snaps pulling off the one-piece infant wear. If detached, the snap becomes a small part that poses a serious choking hazard to young children and particularly infants.  Although no injuries have been reported, Weeplay Kids is voluntarily recalling specific production runs of these products in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

As shown in the photos here, the recall covers sets sold in packs of two, three and five different pastel colored and printed design fabrics. The name Carter’s Watch the Wear appears on the front of the packaging and on the inner neckline of each piece.  The style number is printed on the back of the product packaging.

The following style numbers, made in Bangladesh, are involved in the recall:   

Watch the Wear Bodysuit

• N8963LB
• N8963LG
• N8963LN
• N8964B1
• N8964B2
• N8964G1
• N8964G2
• N8964LB
• N8964LG
• N8964LN
• N8964N1
• N8991LW

Five-pack Bodysuit

Watch the Wear Sleep ‘n Play

• N8965LB
• N8965LG
• N8965LN

The CPSC press release indicates that the following U.S. retail stores carried these sets from November 2010 and through August 2011.

• Big Lots
• Century 21
• Conway
• Cookies
• Cost Mart
• DD’s Discount
• Edison Childrenswear
• Gabriel Brothers
• Kiddy Time
• Kids Place
• Kidstown
• National Stores
• Pamida Stores
• Real Value
• Regine’s
• R.H. Reny
• Ross
• Shoppers World
• Valley Wholesale
• Variety Wholesalers
• Youngland 

Customers who identify their product as one involved in this recall should stop using the garment and contact Weeplay Kids directly for free replacements.

The company can be contacted by phone at (888) 226-2200 or by e-mail at info@weeplaykids.com

Lee Carter Company Infant Rattle poses choking hazard

Lee Carter Company, based in San Francisco, CA is having a bad week.  Earlier Safety Spot wrote about a recall of Lee Carter's set of 12 Mexican wrestling figures due to excessive lead in the paint.  In addition to that recall, the company just announced another recall for 25,000 Infant Rattles.

The handle of the rattle is small enough to fit into the back of the throat, creating a choking hazard for infants. The federal safety requirement for rattles (16 CFR 1510) restricts any part of a rattle from “entering and penetrating to the full depth of a cavity in a test fixture with dimensions shown in figure 1.”

The colorful woven-plastic rattle has a bell captured inside and measures 4-1/2” from end to end. The retail hangtag is printed with the words “Made in Mexico” and “Lee Carter Company.” Just as with the wrestling figures also recalled this week, the rattles were sold in Mexican craft stores across the USA.

The Rattles involved in this recall, sold for $4 each from February 2011 and through October 2011.  Consumers who have purchased these figures should scour the kids’ toy boxes and remove them immediately and return them to Lee Carter Co. for a refund replacement product credit.

The company can be contacted directly by collect call to (415) 824-2004 or via their website at http://www.leecartercompany.com.

Quality & Design Issues force recall of two infant rattle sets

Two collections of infant rattles were recalled from store shelves in Colorado and Dallas last week.  Distributed by Toy Distribution of Los Angeles, one set of five rattles and the other set of nine rattles were sold in toy stores in the two states from December 2009 thru December 2010 at the quality-assuring price of $2.00 a set.

Yes, the facetiousness does seep in here, I admit.  But really folks – how does it make sense that toys that cost less than a cup of coffee can actually be trusted to be safe for an active, teething infant, the most vulnerable of our consumers?  It’s obvious that price alone is not an indication of safety or quality, but certainly it should be one factor that caregivers use to guide their decisions. Quality, toughness and durability built into toys are costly, but for an infant toy, these features should top the list.  Chinese manufacturers, Winning Key Manufacturing and Topwin Toys, HK, produced these sets, and the December 13, 2011 CPSC announcement indicates that only 50 sets are involved.    

In the case of these rattles, small parts can break off creating a choking hazard for children under three years of age.  The plastic handles have a rounded shape at the ends that have the potential to become pushed into the back of the child’s throat, blocking the airway, also creating a choking hazard.  If the child is toddling and falls with the end of the handle in their mouth, this could cause harm to the roof of the mouth or soft pallet. 

Photo: CPSC

• Item name HANDBELL TOYS printed at the top left-hand corner of the boxes. 
• The name "JUNYI" printed on the front top right-hand corner of one box with item number 58083801 on a white sticker on the back of the box.
• The name "XIN DA MEI" printed on the front of the box in the top right-hand corner, with the item number 308363 on a white sticker on the back of the box.

Consumers who think they may possess these sets should remove the toys from  child use immediately and contact the place of purchase for refund or replacement. Toys Distribution can be reached directly at (323) 266-8088, or via email at mailbox@shoptdi.com .