Safety a \u2018non\u2011negotiable priority\u2019<\/p>\n
Fairley said the commission\u2019s key grievance was the packaging, not the toy itself. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt related specifically to an image of a child who appeared to be under 3 years old, despite our clear and prominent age warnings on the packaging,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe are grateful that the court reached the same view on this.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said the commission pursued the matter for more than two years, even though The Warehouse removed the \u201csafe toy\u201d from sale immediately.<\/p>\n
The Warehouse previously issued a voluntary recall notice for the toy. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is disappointing is that over that time, countless toys have been sold to Kiwi families by offshore online retailers, which have been shown to fall seriously short of New Zealand\u2019s product safety requirements.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Warehouse has, and always will, treat the safety of our customers as a non\u2011negotiable priority,” Fairley said.<\/p>\n
A product safety recall was issued for the Roo Crew Take-Apart Vehicle. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
Pope said while the toys carried some warnings, they were labelled and marketed for use by children aged 36 months or under. <\/p>\n
\u201cOur investigation also found the toys were displayed in an aisle with other toys suitable for children aged 5 and under,\u201d Pope said. <\/p>\n
He said toys designed, manufactured, labelled, or marketed for use by children under the age of 3 must comply with the product safety standard under the Fair Trading Act.<\/p>\n
This means they cannot have small parts or parts that could come off during play because of the choking hazard this presents.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe commission formed the view that the Roo Crew Toy was for use by children under 3 and therefore needed to comply with the standard.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe take our role in enforcing the standard seriously, and will act where we see non-compliance, which can have dire consequences,\u201d Pope said. <\/p>\n
He said businesses should take steps to ensure the products they supply comply with legal requirements. <\/p>\n
Any labelling applied to the toy must align with the age appropriateness of the toy.<\/p>\n
The commission\u2019s lawyer Jacob Barry told the Auckland District Court last year the case exposed a flaw in The Warehouse\u2019s quality assurance systems.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got frankly one of the largest toy retailers in the country that sold more than 12,000 potentially dangerous products into the market over a period of two years, all because of an error of judgment,\u201d Barry said. <\/p>\n
He said in many respects, The Warehouse didn\u2019t think it had done much wrong. <\/p>\n
The commission encourages anyone who still has one of the products to return them for a full refund.<\/p>\n