Beloved children’s entertainers The Wiggles “likely breached” consumer law by selling headbands without mandatory safety warnings, according to Australia’s consumer watchdog.<\/p>\n
The findings \u2014 made public by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) \u2014 state the Emma Bow headbands lit up and were powered by button batteries.<\/p>\n
The likely breach relates to the fact that the headbands were sold by The Wiggles Holdings Pty Ltd without mandatory safety warnings required for products containing the batteries.<\/p>\n
Button batteries are a swallowing hazard to young children and can be fatal in rare cases.<\/p>\n
The group sold about 3,164 headbands from June 2022 to March 2024.<\/p>\n
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The Wiggles have recalled the Emma Bow product for the entire period it was sold.\u00a0 (Supplied: ACCC)<\/p>\n
It is understood a further 600 headbands were supplied to other third-party retailers by importer and distributor CA Australia.<\/p>\n
In a statement to the ABC, a media spokesperson for The Wiggles said the product was manufactured and supplied by a licensee before the current Information Standard was introduced in 2020 and came into force in 2022.<\/p>\n
“Due to the COVID-19 pandemic cancellations, the licensee had a surplus of stock produced prior to 2020, and regrettably, it was not identified that these products no longer complied with updated labelling regulations,” they said in a statement.<\/p>\n
In cooperation with the ACCC, The Wiggles will produce an episode of their parenting podcast, highlighting the product’s recall and safety issues relating to button batteries.<\/p>\n
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The Wiggles supplied 3,164 of the headbands to consumers, the ACCC alleges. (Supplied: ACCC)<\/p>\n
This was part of a “range of actions” the brand was taking in partnership with the ACCC.<\/p>\n
“At The Wiggles, the safety and wellbeing of children and families is always our highest priority,” the spokesperson added.<\/p>\n
“We want every parent and carer to feel complete confidence in any product bearing The Wiggles name.<\/p>\n
“The Wiggles are committed to ensuring that every product associated with our brand meets the highest standards of safety, quality and reliability.<\/p>\n
“We will continue to take proactive steps to protect children and support Australian families in every way we can.”<\/p>\n