Unsafe toys for sale online

20 toys under the magnifying glass

We have bought various toys in different online stores and subjected them to exhaustive safety tests. Some were from well-known brands and we bought from the brand's own stores, and some were bought from Marketplaces, where we suspected there would be a much higher chance of causing security issues. We knew this, in part, from other international studies that show the problems of online commerce.

We made a purchase of 20 toys, including skateboards, baby dolls; cheap early childhood toys (rattles and teethers), a colorful ball... and more toys from well-known brands, a costume, a children's store, other educational construction games and even an experiment game.

9 unsafe toys

Of the 20 toys purchased online, we detected security flaws in 9. The nine products with security problems are:

From OCU we have sent an alert to the Ministry of Consumption so that dangerous products are reported in the European alert system and are withdrawn from the market.

OCU's task to ensure that users have safer products is working: from El Corte Inglés they have already informed us that they have proceeded to immediately withdraw the Roddi scooter as a precaution while they confirm the results that we have communicated to them, in a fast and responsible reaction that we are pleased about.

The most common failures

Mechanical and chemical safety failures

In most cases these are mechanical safety problems: The most common danger is that of parts small and we have found it in seven of the nine dangerous toys (construction games, dolls, rattles...). Other times the risk comes from the presence of elements that are too large, hard, which can cause injuries (as happens with the musical teether), or that there are spaces between the pieces or parts of a toy that can cause the finger of a child is trapped with the consequent risk (for example on the HomCom scooter). In addition, on this occasion we have detected another problem, caused by the presence of magnets that are too strong, above the safety limit, which is dangerous for children.

In addition to mechanical risks, there are chemical risks, caused by the presence of phthalates, as we have detected in one of the toys, the Baby Lovely Unicorn doll. DEHP phthalate is a prohibited substance, whose maximum detection limit cannot exceed 0.1%; its accumulation in the body acts as an endocrine disruptor and also as a reproductive toxin. It cannot be used in any type of product... and we found it in a baby toy. This substance is a frequent cause for concern.

Defects in labeling that affect security

Along with this, we detected problems in the labeling. The most relevant failures have to do with the recommended age, manufacturers do not always do it correctly: for example, they advertise for one age in the store and for others on the product itself. Or they include small parts without notifying them.

In other cases, the instructions or safety warnings are only in English, which can be a problem for the consumer if they do not know the language

Beware of buying copies

Imitations are a constant source of concern for manufacturers and also for consumer organizations that ensure the safety of products and preserve the competition. Sometimes toy copies are very tempting and not only because of their appearance, but also because of the price. But do not trust, they usually have traps, like these that we have detected in our study. The original is a safe product, but its copies are not so much:

The marketplaces do not provide good information

We bought the toys in eleven stores: Ikea, Disney Store, Lego, Playmobil, Toys “R” Us, El Corte Inglés, Lidl, Carrefour, Drim, Amazon, AliExpress . Three of them work as Marketplace: AliExpress, Amazon and Carrefour and it is precisely these that have presented the most failures.

We bought six toys in the AliExpress Marketplace stores, three in Amazon and in Drim we bought two. At Carrefour we buy one in their Marketplace, and another in their usual store. In seven of the eleven stores studied, we bought a single toy, so it cannot be said that the results apply to all the toys in the same store, although we have observed a common pattern.

To assess the stores we have studied aspects related to the store, the toy, safety, abilities associated with age, language and after-sales service. We check that:

European safety commitment PLEDGE

To protect the consumer, the Product Safety Pledge EU has been created, an agreement of the European Commission by which the eleven adhered Marketplaces undertake to respond to notifications about products dangerous goods issued by the authorities of the Member States within two working days and to react to customer notices within five. From our study, only Amazon and AliExpress are included; We are not aware that the Carrefour Marketplace has done so, and for the other stores the commitment does not apply.

Do you shop online? Find out where you do it. Consult our

Online store comparator

Choose safe toys this Christmas

Do you want to get the right toys you buy this Christmas? If you are going to buy toys online, take a good look at where you buy them. And when you receive them, take into account the age of the child to whom you are going to give the toy, and avoid problems by paying attention to the main safety details: instructions and information in your language, absence of small parts, sharp, hard elements, too much large for the child, sharp edges, spaces where their fingers can be trapped...

11 of the 20 toys purchased have been revealed as safe products: sign up and find out what they are.