What CPSIA will mean for consignment sales
January 13, 2009 by kellys
Filed under baby products, news, odds and ends
Earlier this week, I told you of what my local consignment store said about the new CPSIA law enacted to keep our kids safe from lead. Then I got another email. So I thought I would let you know what they said.
Dear Valued Customer,
We received great news from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), clarifying the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act that goes into effect on February 10, 2009. From the statement -
“The new law requires that domestic manufacturers and importers certify that children’s products made after February 10 meet all the new safety standards and the lead ban. Sellers of used children’s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards.”
“The new safety law does not require resellers to test children’s products in inventory for compliance with the lead limit before they are sold. However, resellers cannot sell children’s products that exceed the lead limit and therefore should avoid products that are likely to have lead content… Those resellers that do sell products in violation of the new limits could face civil and/or criminal penalties.”
We always have been and will continue to be committed to buying & selling product that meets the standards supplied to us by the CPSC. To continue to ensure the safety of your children, we will not buy or sell items noted in the statement -
“recalled children’s products, children’s products that will contain lead such as children’s jewelry, painted wooden or metal toys, flimsily made toys that are easily breakable into small parts and dolls and stuffed toys that have buttons, eyes, noses or other small parts that are not securely fastened and could present a choking hazard for young children. ”
We are thrilled that we will be continuing to provide you with an outlet to buy quality, safe, gently used children’s merchandise. We are also committed to providing to you an opportunity to get cash for children’s items you no longer need, and the ability to trade for items you do need.
We are committed to buying & selling product that meets these standards, and as we always have, we will continue to closely monitor CPSC recalls and advisories.
whew!!!!!!!!!! load off my mind!!!! i’m soooooooo glad i didn’t go into panic mode and run out to buy several sizes up for numerous children (i just DON’T have enough storage space left!!!) thanks so much kelly for posting this!!! now i need to go call my sister (and hope she didn’t take my advice to stockpile) and let her know all is well!!!
Never panic anyway. That is the least frugal thing to do and you of all people know it!
LOL…you’re right!!!! i’m normally not like this….i don’t know what got into me….i guess with all the government intervention in our lives these days…and everything i’m reading about people losing their jobs and homes…it just seemed like one more thing to worry about. one of the things that kept me back was doing an inventory of my kids clothes and realizing that i’m enough ahead of the game that by the time i would TRULY need clothes….there would be safety rated clothes at the thrift stores and i would be fine…lol. i have such a stash pile of clearance items from old navy;childrens place; target; gymboree…what was i thinking????? it must be the weather getting to me and fogging up my mind (-8 degrees here today…-25 with the wind chill…no school…no leaving the house)
Actually, you do have reason to worry. NOTHING has changed about this law and how it affects resale, consignment and thrift stores. I suspect the letter quoted above was from one of the big chains like OUAC (a franchise) that did not want to alarm their franchisors or the public – but are not being forthright, in my opinion, about this law and what it states. They are willing to remain open and hope no inspector from CPSC, the state consumer protection office or a reporter or disgruntled customer comes in to ‘check’ – and if they find something they can be fined up to $100,000 and 5 years in jail. MANY thrifts and consignment stores are NOT willing to accept this risk to their finances or to their freedom.
Don’t believe me? Go to the National Association of Resale and Thrift Stores at http://www.narts.org and read what THEY have to say. Don’t you think they would know? Or read the recent article in the Wall Street Journal, ‘Pelosi’s Toy Story:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118721293722898880.html
Or, the latest article, from a lawyer at Forbes Magazine:
http://www.forbes.com/opinions/2009/01/16/cpsia-safety-toys-oped-cx_wo_0116olson.html
If you’d like to help us fight this, please help us stop all this misinformation and write or call your congressman or senator and sign our petition (over 77,000 signatures so far as I write) at
http://www.savekidsresale.com