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The Commerce Commission is filing criminal charges against The Warehouse over potentially dangerous children’s toys.
The charges involve “Roo Crew Take-Apart Vehicle Toys”, which the Commission believes pose a choking hazard.
The Warehouse has issued a voluntary recall and consumers are urged to return the toys for a refund.
The Commerce Commission is filing criminal charges against The Warehouse after it “raised the alarm” over potentially dangerous children’s toys.
The charges are for supplying and selling “Roo Crew Take-Apart Vehicle Toys”, which the Commission believes present a choking hazard for young children.
Principal compliance adviser Grant McIntosh said the commission was concerned about the risk these toys, which have been sold at stores since March 2021, could pose to small children.
“Businesses cannot avoid their responsibility under the Fair Trading Act by simply labelling toys for children over 3 if the toy is designed or marketed for use by younger children,” McIntosh said.
The commission will soon be filing charges in the District Court over the toys.
“Businesses must ensure that the products they supply comply with legal requirements and are safe for the intended user – particularly toys for small children where the consequences of unsafe toys can be dire,” McIntosh said.
The Warehouse has issued a voluntary recall for the product, and the commission strongly encouraged any consumers who have any of the Roo Crew Take-Apart Vehicle Toys to return them to The Warehouse for a full refund.
The Warehouse executive general manager merchandising Tania Benyon said the business will be taking advice on next steps and considering legal options.
“We’re disappointed by the Commerce Commission’s decision to commence legal proceedings against us, especially given our full cooperation since they raised this matter with us in 2023 and the fact that we immediately removed the item from sale as soon issues were raised.
“The Roo Crew Take Apart Vehicle, while compliant with all safety standards and clearly labelled and marketed for ages three and over, is no longer sold in our stores as a sign of how seriously we take product safety.”
The Commerce Commission will be filing criminal charges against The Warehouse Limited for supplying and selling “Roo Crew Take-Apart Vehicle Toys".
Toys that are designed, manufactured, labelled or marketed for use by children under 3 years old must comply with the product safety standard under the Fair Trading Act.
This means they cannot have small parts or small parts that could come off during play as this presents a choking hazard for young children.
The commission’s view is that these toys were for use by children under 3 and so must comply with the standard.
“We urge all parents who may have these toys to return them – the dollar value of the toy might be small, but the risk of harm to young children is not worth taking,” McIntosh said.
Jaime Lyth is a multimedia journalist for the New Zealand Herald, focusing on crime and breaking news. Lyth began working under the NZ Herald masthead in 2021 as a reporter for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei.
