Product Safety

A gold watch on a table with button batteries scattered around the watch A gold watch on a table with button batteries scattered around the watch

New mandatory safety and information standards around the supply of button batteries and consumer goods containing them came into effect on 22 December 2020. This is an Office of Fair Trading Qld Media Release Fair Trading Executive Director Brian Bauer said these new mandatory safety and information standards are overdue as too many children are…

Read More Fair Trading welcomes new button battery mandatory standards

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Under certain circumstances, open flued gas space heaters pose a risk of releasing unhealthy and sometimes lethal concentrations of carbon monoxide into buildings. Malfunctioning, poorly or infrequently serviced open flued gas space heaters in residential settings have resulted in the deaths of three Victorians since 2010. Your views are being sought on the Regulatory Impact…

Read More Phase out of open flued gas space heaters — have your say

Small round disk batteries in green and black cardboard packaging that says 'GP Lithium' Small round disk batteries in green and black cardboard packaging that says 'GP Lithium'

The Morrison Government is delivering on its commitment to improve the safety of button batteries with the introduction of new mandatory safety and information standards to help protect Australian children. This is a media release by the Hon Michael Sukkar MP In Australia three children have died from injuries sustained as a result of swallowing…

Read More Mandatory improvement to button battery safety to save lives

and hand pumping hand sanitiser from a bottle and hand pumping hand sanitiser from a bottle

The following is a media release by the Hon Michael Sukkar MP: Consumers will be able to better identify the effectiveness of different hand sanitiser products under new laws designed to help Australians stay COVIDsafe. The Morrison Government has accepted the recommendations of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that requires hand sanitiser manufactures…

Read More Better hand sanitiser information to keep COVIDsafe

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Four of Australia’s largest e-commerce businesses have confirmed their commitment to protecting consumers from unsafe goods online after signing on to a new product safety pledge. The following is a media release by the ACCC. The Australian Product Safety Pledge launched today, is a voluntary initiative that commits its signatories to a range of safety related responsibilities…

Read More E-commerce businesses pledge to strengthen product safety online

Two people on a quad bike Two people on a quad bike

On Friday, CFA hosted its Consumer Advocacy Soapbox Session, celebrating the best consumer advocacy campaigns over 2019–20. The Soapbox Session was initially part of the National Consumer Congress, which was to be in March. With the support of the ACCC, CFA moved the Session online. The winner of the Award was Raphael Grzebieta from the…

Read More CFA Soapbox Prizewinner — Quad Bike Performance Project

A childs hands playing with toy blocks A childs hands playing with toy blocks

Luke Nottage, Professor, Sydney Law School, University of Sydney This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. The death of Brittney Conway, the three-year-old Gold Coast girl killed by swallowing a button battery, has again drawn attention to deaths and injuries caused by consumer goods – and to…

Read More Rather than recalling unsafe products, why not ensure they’re safe in the first place?

Small round disk batteries in green and black cardboard packaging that says 'GP Lithium' Small round disk batteries in green and black cardboard packaging that says 'GP Lithium'

The ACCC is urging parents and carers to be aware of the serious risks associated with button batteries, as it launches its ‘Tiny batteries, Big danger’ safety campaign today. In Australia, one child a month is seriously injured after swallowing or inserting a button battery, with some of them sustaining lifelong injuries. In Australia and globally, there…

Read More Button batteries – tiny batteries, big danger

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The Battery Stewardship Council (BSC) will be able to establish and operate a national scheme for managing expired batteries under an authorisation granted by the ACCC. BSC was formed in 2018 with the primary goal of establishing a battery stewardship scheme in Australia that would see a significant increase in battery collections and recycling. Batteries…

Read More Voluntary battery stewardship scheme granted authorisation

A childs hands playing with toy blocks A childs hands playing with toy blocks

The Morrison Government has approved a new mandatory safety standard for toys with loose small high-powered magnets to help protect younger children. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s new mandatory safety standard limits toys with loose small high-powered magnets to scientific sets for children aged eight years and over. Children are at risk of serious…

Read More New safety standards for toys containing magnets

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Ladders are used in most households for a range of jobs from DIY to changing lightbulbs; however, if the ladder is not in good condition or is used unsafely, falls can occur and cause fractured limbs, spinal cord damage, severe brain injury or death.  Standards Australia has just published a revised standard AS 1895.2:2020 Portable ladders which provides minimum requirements…

Read More Safe ladder use and Australian Standards