ACCC action results in $25,000 product safety campaign for remote Indigenous communities

Published

21 Aug 2012

Product safety in remote Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory will benefit from a $25,000 consumer education campaign following Australian Competition and Consumer Commission surveillance and enforcement action.

G & R Wills Holdings Pty Ltd will implement the campaign as part of a court enforceable undertaking provided to the ACCC after the company supplied unsafe baby walkers and strollers.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims said this is a serious breach of product safety standards impacting on children in remote Indigenous communities.

"Consumer law provides protection to people wherever they live. Businesses operating in Australia's remote regions should know that the ACCC has a proactive surveillance program and will take enforcement action to protect Indigenous consumers," Mr Sims said.

As well as the undertaking, the supplier has also paid three infringement notices, issued by the ACCC, attracting a combined penalty of $19,800.

A number of unsafe baby walkers and strollers have also been removed from sale.

The ACCC found that more than 1,300 baby walkers supplied by G & R Wills breached mandatory product safety standards.

"The walkers did not have a braking mechanism to prevent them from falling down stairs and did not have an adequate warning label. These are important safety features which are designed to prevent injuries to children," Mr Sims said.

Since the introduction of the mandatory standard for baby walkers in 2002, data shows that the number of injuries has declined.

In addition to the non-compliant baby walkers, two different models of strollers wholesaled by G & R Wills failed to meet mandatory safety requirements by not having the required warning labels.

G & R Wills has undertaken to contract a media organisation to produce and broadcast bi-lingual product safety information bulletins designed for parents of young children living in remote NT Indigenous communities.

As part of the undertakings, G & R Wills will also develop a trade practices compliance program and will refrain from engaging in similar conduct in the future.

For more information about product safety, visit www.productsafety.gov.au or call the ACCC Infocentre on 1300 302 502 or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ProductSafetyAU.

You can also find product safety information via the ACCC's Product Safety Facebook Page and YouTube channel ACCC Product Safety.