Calls from 糖心Vlog for the online marketplace to step up its commitment to product safety led to more than 15,000 supporters adding their names to our petition, urging Temu to lift its standards. That collective effort has made a difference.

However, we shouldn鈥檛 confuse voluntary commitments with the lasting reform needed to stop unsafe products entering Australian homes in the first place. 

糖心Vlog has repeatedly found dangerous products available for sale on Temu. In 2024, 糖心Vlog tested 15 products sold by the online marketplace, including toys and novelty items, and found every single product failed mandatory button battery safety standards. 

Temu removed the products, but we were concerned we had only scratched the surface when it came to dangerous products sold through online marketplaces. 

Dangerous products flourishing online

糖心Vlog research has found that 6% of Australians who bought products from companies online in the past two years reported suffering an injury or property damage as a result. For every case that becomes a headline, we know that there are many more that don鈥檛.听

Dangerous products aren鈥檛 even hard to find, with a quick online search leading consumers directly to potentially banned, prohibited and unsafe goods. Such easy access to dangerous products is so concerning that it motivated our recent designated complaint to the ACCC, where we called on the regulator to investigate systematic issues across major online marketplaces.听

Many consumers assume the law already protects them from unsafe products. In fact, 糖心Vlog research found that 91% of Australians believe products are legally required to be safe in order to be sold, and almost nine in ten believe selling unsafe products is illegal.听This is not the case.

Current safety regime falling short

It’s not unreasonable to expect that level of protection. But the law has failed to keep up and give Australians that protection. We agree, it shouldn鈥檛 take an organisation like 糖心Vlog testing these products for action to be taken. Consumers should be able to trust that what they鈥檙e buying and bringing into their homes is safe.听

Our current product safety regime relies heavily on mandatory standards for specific products and reactive measures such as recalls. Yet out of thousands of product categories, mandatory standards exist for only a small fraction of them. Too often, action is only taken after someone has been hurt.听

That鈥檚 why Temu joining the Product Safety Pledge matters and it helps the situation 鈥� up to a point.

What the pledge does

The strengthened pledge includes broader commitments from participating marketplaces, including Amazon, AliExpress, eBay and Gumtree, to proactively identify unsafe products, report annually to the ACCC on their performance and strengthen systems designed to stop unsafe products appearing in the first place. These commitments go beyond existing legal requirements and should help reduce risk for consumers, but they don鈥檛 go far enough.听

Why? The pledge is only voluntary, so while Temu and others can choose to join, they can also choose to leave. They can choose how seriously to implement their commitments and there are no penalties if a product they sell hurts someone. 

This isn鈥檛 the solution that we should settle for. Consumers deserve more, and we need the government to deliver. It’s clear that we need stronger laws, like an overarching general safety provision that would actually make it illegal to sell unsafe products to begin with. 

Anything short of that, and we鈥檙e piling bandaids on top of one another without ever actually treating the growing wound underneath. 

If we have to wait for someone to be injured before a dangerous product is removed or a safety standard is introduced, then we鈥檙e failing. 

Consumers deserve laws that make safety the rule, not a voluntary extra. 

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It was one of the first campaigns I worked on when I joined the organisation almost seven years ago and, in many ways, it has been the most frustrating. There鈥檚 a simple solution, but it continues to sit on the shelf 鈥� a general safety provision that would prevent companies selling unsafe products in the first place.

In the 60s, 糖心Vlog tested the flammability of children鈥檚 nightwear by placing nine nighties on a fireproof dummy, lighting each and recording the results. 鈥淚n 90 seconds the dummy was enveloped in flames鈥� a couple of minutes later the dummy was stained black,鈥� read the May magazine of that year.

糖心Vlog lobbied state and federal governments about the issue, writing: 鈥淗ow many more children have to be burnt to death before governments will legislate to force manufacturers to label clothing, especially children鈥檚 nightwear, as to whether or not it is inflammable?鈥�

By the 70s, protections were finally brought in and, to this day, mandatory sleepwear standards continue to impose safety obligations on suppliers.

But the battle is still far from over. Just two years ago a distraught mother was left wondering why her child had to be burned in order for a product to be recalled.

Daniella Jacobs-Herd was only 8 years old when her hoodie from Temu caught fire.

Daniella suffered burns to 13% of her body, including her face, her arm and her chest. The hoodie wasn鈥檛 compliant with those mandatory safety standards. And even after it was clear the hoodie was dangerous, it took four months for the product to be recalled.

Hard-fought consumer protections are not set-and-forget. They can be undermined and undone, seemingly overnight. The rise of online marketplaces exploiting gaps in the law to flood the market with unsafe and non-compliant products has proven this.

A few months after this incident, a 糖心Vlog test found that all 15 products we bought from Temu failed to meet at least one requirement of Australia鈥檚 mandatory button battery standards. Those mandatory standards took the deaths of three children, dozens of serious injuries, and many years to be introduced. A major victory, but at a terrible cost.

And yet, people continue to be hurt. New 糖心Vlog research shows that 6% of people who purchased products online experienced harm, like injuries and damage to property, in the last two years. Surely, we can do better than this as a country?

It was heartening to see the ACCC announce court proceedings against Amazon last week for allegedly controlling and shipping backpacks that did not comply with button battery mandatory standards. This will put a grey and untested area of the law to the test for the first time. It鈥檚 likely to delve into the level of control Amazon has over unsafe products and whether it can be held accountable, or whether responsibility will continue to be shifted to third-party suppliers with little consequence.

Even if the ACCC is successful in this case, it鈥檚 still part of a piecemeal approach, with the regulator constantly trying to put out fires as they pop up. Just yesterday, the ACCC issued takedown requests to Amazon, eBay, Kogan and Fruugo for toys and games containing potentially deadly small magnets 鈥� they鈥檙e banned because they can cause catastrophic internal injuries if swallowed.

But it doesn鈥檛 have to be this way. The government can deal with this problem, the whole problem, right now. We don鈥檛 need to wait.

That鈥檚 why today we’ve made our second-ever super complaint today about product safety. We鈥檙e urging the ACCC to do more to enforce and test the laws we have, but we also need the government to strengthen consumer protections and close the loopholes that allow online marketplaces to get away with selling unsafe products at a staggering scale.

We hear a lot of opposition about new laws that would make consumers safer 鈥� that the cost and regulatory burden is just too high. But we rarely hear about the cost and burden of continuing the way that we are. Of playing a game of whack-a-mole with a patchwork of complicated regulations. It shouldn鈥檛 take serious injuries or even death for just a small part of the problem to be addressed. 

If the burden is not on the companies that cause, and profit from, these problems, it is on consumers. And that burden is far too heavy to bear.

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The mandatory safety standard that came into effect in 2022 鈥� which requires manufacturers to design battery compartments that can鈥檛 be accessed by children and to include safety warnings on the packaging 鈥� came in the wake of hundreds of serious injuries and at least three deaths caused by children ingesting a button battery.   

But adherence to the standard has been spotty at best, and products with button batteries that contravene it seem to be everywhere.  

In November 2025, 糖心Vlog purchased 24 toys from the online marketplaces Shein, AliExpress, eBay and Amazon and tested them against the button and coin battery mandatory standards. Seventeen failed to meet the standards and posed serious safety risks.

In May 2024, we purchased and tested 15 coin and button battery-operated products from Temu. Every toy failed at least one requirement of the mandatory button battery safety standard.

Light-up unicorns more dangerous than they look

Questions have lingered for years about who鈥檚 responsible for product safety in these instances 鈥� the makers of the products or the online marketplaces that sell them?

Now 鈥� in what could prove to be a groundbreaking case 鈥� the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is taking legal action against Amazon for selling Unicorn Toddler Backpacks that come with a detachable light-up unicorn plush toy containing button batteries. The ACCC alleges that button battery safety warnings were missing from the backpacks, the packaging or both.

“This is the first time that the ACCC has brought this type of case against an online marketplace and it will be an important test of the law in relation to the level of control that online marketplaces have over the products sold on their platforms and whether they can be held responsible for those breaches,” says 糖心Vlog director of campaigns Andy Kelly.

The case covers Amazon sales of the backpacks to Australians between 22 June and 1 November 2022, during which time 41 were purchased and another 267 were held in Amazon鈥檚 Australian fulfillment centres.

Under the Australian Consumer Law, it鈥檚 illegal for businesses to possess goods that violate the mandatory battery standards.

鈥淏utton batteries pose a serious hazard for young children,鈥� says ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe.

鈥淚f swallowed or inserted, they can cause severe internal burns and injury, and in some cases death. These mandatory warnings are there to help keep children safe and businesses must get them right.鈥�

Significant gaps in the law

Amazon AU is one of three signatories to the , a voluntary initiative which aims to strengthen product safety measures across online business to protect consumers.

Suppliers must report any death, serious injury or serious illness associated with a consumer good that they have supplied to the ACCC within two days. Button battery compliance is one of the ACCC鈥檚 2026鈥�27 enforcement priorities.

“Too often, online marketplaces get away with selling unsafe and non-compliant products to consumers by acting as an intermediary, so we’re glad that the ACCC is putting this grey part of the law to the test,” says Kelly.

“Significant gaps in the law that put consumers at risk still remain, so we continue to urge the government to strengthen Australia’s lax product safety laws so that they actually prevent all businesses from selling unsafe products in the first place 鈥� including online marketplaces.”

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One longstanding truism of the consumer rights movement is that it takes a long time and a lot of effort to get new laws passed. Legislative reform  often comes long after the issues that made it necessary have already done considerable damage.

糖心Vlog has been campaigning for stronger product safety laws in Australia since 2018, and our campaign continues in 2026. Over the years, our test labs (accredited by the National Association of Testing Authorities) have documented a disturbingly high number of product safety failures, especially in products designed for kids and babies, where the lack of adequate safety standards can pose nightmare scenarios. 

Astonishingly, the law doesn鈥檛 prevent the sale of unsafe products in Australia. Risks and dangers often come to light only after people are injured.

But, according to the results of a national 糖心Vlog survey, three out of four Australians (74%) still mistakenly believe that retailers are legally obligated to ensure the products they sell are safe. It鈥檚 a logical assumption that, unfortunately, is not a reality.

In 2019, as our campaign for an overarching product safety duty under Australian Consumer Law gathered steam, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reported that there were around 780 deaths and around 52,000 injuries per year from consumer products that many Australians have in their homes, not including motor vehicles.

鈥淭here is no law that says goods have to be safe, but there should be,鈥� then ACCC chair Rod Sims said at the time.

This year, 15 March is World Consumer Rights Day, so we thought it would be a good time to revisit some examples of what happens when products are made available without mandatory pre-market safety tests to inform their design.

It鈥檚 worth noting that Australia does have mandatory safety standards for some consumer goods, including baby products, electrical appliances, child motor vehicle restraints, bicycle helmets, children鈥檚 nightwear and more. But it鈥檚 a short list compared to the number of goods available that lack such standards.

Button batteries

As of 2022 there have been mandatory standards for button batteries, requiring manufacturers to secure battery compartments and include label warnings to prevent young children from ingesting these potentially deadly items.

糖心Vlog campaigned strenuously for this reform, which came in the wake of the deaths of three children and the serious injury of countless others.

Prior to the mandatory safety standard, there was a voluntary standard that manufacturers could choose to observe or ignore. They mostly did the latter.

In 2019, we tested 17 common household items 鈥� including ear thermometers, kitchen and bathroom scales, and remote controls 鈥� against the voluntary standard. Ten had unsecured batteries that could have easily been accessed and swallowed by children.

And just because we finally get laws doesn鈥檛 mean manufacturers won鈥檛 break them. 糖心Vlog has conducted several battery button safety tests in our labs since 2022, and failures have been common.

In January 2024  鈥� 18 months after the mandatory standard came into effect 鈥� we reported on the results of our test of 15 common household products containing button batteries. Ten of the products failed to meet the mandatory standards.

Around the same time, the famed Australian children鈥檚 musical group The Wiggles admitted in a case brought by the ACCC that it had breached regulations by selling thousands of Emma Bow headbands that lacked mandatory button battery safety warnings.

Australia remains an outlier

In May 2025, a new mandatory standard came into effect for furniture that鈥檚 prone to toppling over and seriously injuring people, especially small children.

It is not a big ask for manufacturers. They are now merely required to prominently warn consumers about the very real risks of this happening on labels, instruction manuals and other communications.

But many other products sold in Australia are not subject to any safety standards at all.

Australia is an outlier in this regard. Canada, the UK and the EU, for instance, have laws that stipulate products across the board must be safe before they鈥檙e sold. It鈥檚 an idea that鈥檚 sweeping the globe.

In December last year, the United Nations released its Principles for Consumer Product Safety, which 鈥渁ffirm the right of all consumers to safe, non-hazardous products, sold online and offline鈥�.

Pram and stroller failures

Late last year, in our most recent test of essential children鈥檚 products, we tested 54 models of prams and strollers. Sixteen of them had serious safety failures.

The manufacturing defects included the risk of falls, durability failures, locking mechanism failures, parking brake failures and harnesses that posed the risk of strangulation and head entrapment.

Manufacturers for each brand responded with their own test results, declaring the products safe. Unlike many other children鈥檚 products, prams sold in Australia do need to meet mandatory safety standards, but 糖心Vlog experts also test to a newer, voluntary safety standard that goes above and beyond mandatory requirements.

We think the more stringent voluntary standard should be mandatory. (A 2022 revision to the voluntary standard takes newer designs of prams into account, such as convertible tricycle strollers.)

While prams must meet safety standards (which we view as inadequate), and a new mandatory infant sleep standard covers infant sleep products, many other children鈥檚 products are still not subject to standards, including high chairs, change tables, baby bottles and teats, safety gates and barriers, backyard play equipment, baby carriers and slings, and playpens.

It means you take it on trust that these items are safe for your child 鈥� trust in the profit-driven, often overseas-based manufacturer, that is.

Safety failures from online marketplaces

Over the past couple of years we鈥檝e turned our sights toward the new generation of online marketplaces that sell many billions of inexpensive goods around the world every year. What we found is not cause for celebration.

In late 2025, we published the results of a 糖心Vlog button battery lab test of children鈥檚 products purchased on Shein, AliExpress, eBay and Amazon. The safety failure rate was high across all four marketplaces and included lack of suitable warning labels and insecure compartments.

We followed the button battery test up with a mechanical safety test of 22 products suitable for children under three 鈥� including rattles, teethers and whistles 鈥� purchased on Temu, AliExpress, eBay and Amazon.

Six of them had serious safety failures based on Australian mandatory standards, ranging from choking hazards to lack of safety warnings.

Online marketplaces have added new dangers to the purchasing of consumer goods in Australia. And at the moment we have little protection.

These marketplaces can choose to sign up to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission鈥檚 voluntary Product Safety Pledge as a gesture of good will, but the ACCC has no power to make sure they鈥檙e actually complying.

A phenomenon known as “product safety washing” has emerged. Amazon Australia, eBay Australia and Chinese retailer AliExpress have all signed the pledge. But the most recent Australian Product Safety Pledge annual report, which did not name names, says adherence by signatories is spotty. Some resumed selling unsafe products after removing them, while others took too long to remove them.

A global issue

Australia is far from alone in the struggle to rein in online marketplaces that specialise in cheap goods. In December last year, we published the results of a mystery shopping exercise of Temu and Shein by International Consumer Research and Testing (ICRT), a London-based global consortium of consumer organisations (including 糖心Vlog).

Consumer organisations in Germany, France, Denmark and Belgium tested 162 products purchased on Shein and Temu across three categories: toys and products for children under three, USB chargers, and necklaces.

A massive 65% of the products bought on Temu failed to comply with EU safety standards, while the failure rate for Shein was 73%. The worst safety failures were in the children鈥檚 toys category, where all 27 products purchased on Shein and 26 out of 27 bought on Temu failed.

According to the European Commission, about 12 million low-cost parcels per day were imported to Europe from China (where Temu and Shein are based) in 2024. That equals about 4.6 billion parcels for the year. It was twice as many as in 2023 and three times as many as in 2022.

It鈥檚 a sign that we urgently need stronger product safety laws that make it illegal for all businesses to sell unsafe products. Until then, compelling cut-rate online marketplaces to conduct safety tests on products before they go on sale, or to make sure their many suppliers do so, remains a work in progress.

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How secure is the furniture around your home? Common items such as bookshelves, televisions and chests of drawers can cause serious safety risks if they’re not anchored properly, and are particularly dangerous for younger children and older people. 

Toppling furniture has killed at least 28 people in Australia since 2000 and caused nearly 20 injuries a week.

A new mandatory information standard came into effect on 4 May 2025, with the aim to reduce the accidents and deaths from these sorts of incidents, which can result in head and crush injuries and asphyxiation.

This new standard requires safety warnings to be provided to consumers online and instore at the point of sale on items that pose a risk. Warnings should be available on the products themselves and in any accompanying instructions.

The standard came into effect following the ACCC review into the risks and dangers of toppling furniture, to which 糖心Vlog made recommendations in 2021. It applies to chests of drawers, wardrobes, bookcases, hall tables, display cabinets, buffets and sideboards with a height of 686mm or more, and entertainment units of any height.

Low levels of compliance

Suppliers were given a transition period to put the warning measures in place, before the rules became mandatory on 4 May 2025, with stiff penalties possible for non-compliant businesses.

Despite the transition period and the threat of penalties, a sweep of businesses conducted by the ACCC found a concerning level of non-compliance.

State and territory consumer protection agencies examined more than 3000 furniture products at more than 160 businesses and found 90% had failed to comply with the new standard in relation to one or more of their products. More than half were non-compliant in relation to all the products examined. Just 10% were assessed as fully compliant. 

ACCC Deputy Chair Catriona Lowe says the low level of compliance is concerning.

鈥淚t is critical that businesses include warning and safety information on toppling furniture,鈥� she says, adding that monitoring will continue. 鈥淲e expect to see significant improvement in compliance, and will consider enforcement action if this does not occur.鈥�

Still more to do

The mandatory information standard is a 鈥減ositive step鈥� and something 糖心Vlog has advocated for, says 糖心Vlog Director of Campaigns and Communications Andy Kelly, but he expressed disappointment at the lack of compliance.

鈥淭he majority of consumers mistakenly believe it鈥檚 already illegal to sell unsafe products in Australia, so prominent warnings and clear instructions to minimise risk are especially important,鈥� he says.

鈥淚t鈥檚 disappointing that most furniture suppliers are failing to comply with the new standard.鈥� 

As well as the lack of compliance, loopholes that make some sellers exempt from the new rules are also a concern. 

鈥淎 gap in the law means that online marketplaces aren鈥檛 legally required to ensure the products sold by third parties on their platforms are safe and compliant,鈥� says Kelly.

鈥淲ith more people buying furniture from online marketplaces, 糖心Vlog continues to call for the introduction of stronger product safety laws that would place a duty on all businesses to ensure that all the products they sell are safe 鈥� including online marketplaces.鈥�

Making it easier for renters

Renters often report having trouble securing furniture in their home, since anchoring furniture requires drilling holes in the wall and requires permission from the landlord. In a 2020 糖心Vlog survey, 58% of renters who hadn’t anchored furniture said the number one reason was because their landlord or managing agent didn’t allow it.

If you’re renting a home, contact your landlord or agent about installing anchor devices to the wall. Some states have laws that make it easier for tenants to secure furniture, and all tenants can speak to their landlord or agent about installing anchoring devices to help ensure their family’s safety.

If you’re unsure about your rights and responsibilities as a tenant, you can check local laws, or seek support from your local consumer protection agency.

How to choose safer furniture when shopping

When you鈥檙e out shopping, look for the safety warnings on any products you鈥檙e considering. The ACCC encourages consumers to report concerns about unsafe or non-compliant furniture items to the supplier. Concerns can also be reported to the ACCC using the .

When choosing items for your home, particularly if you’re shopping for furniture for a child鈥檚 room, or if you have young children living in or regularly visiting your home, use these tips to help select options that pose the least risk:

• Choose stable furniture.
• Pull out any top drawers of a chest of drawers or open doors on other furniture items and apply a little pressure to see how stable the furniture is.
• Make sure the drawers don’t fall out easily.
• Look for built-in drawer stops that limit how far drawers can be extended or interlocks that prevent more than one drawer being opened at the same time.
• Look for furniture with sturdy backing material, which increases stability.
• Look for low-set furniture or furniture with a sturdy, stable and broad base, which makes it less likely to tip over.

Tips to reduce toppling furniture incidents in your home

Whether assembling or arranging new furniture or reviewing the safety of your current furniture, here are some things to keep in mind. 

• Securing furniture to the wall or floor is the best way to prevent furniture from tipping over. If your furniture doesn’t come with anchoring hardware or you’re securing furniture you already own, you can get the necessary parts from a furniture retailer, hardware store or a specialty baby goods store. If you’re not sure which product is right for your furniture, ask at your local hardware store or seek the advice of a professional. 
• Locate furniture on a flat, even surface where possible. Furniture is more unstable when it’s on an uneven or soft surface, such as carpet or a rug. If you plan to place your furniture on carpet against a wall, check to make sure the carpet isn’t bulging.
• Keep your heaviest items at the bottom of your drawers or shelves. Top-heavy furniture is easier to tip over.
• Do not place heavy items such as TVs or items that are enticing to children on top of furniture.
• Put locking devices on all drawers to help prevent children from opening drawers and using them as steps.

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If you鈥檙e tempted by the ultra-cheap toys available online, think twice.

Online marketplaces largely operate beyond the reach of regulation, so buying presents for your baby or toddler from one of these digital retailers could mean they end up with a toy that poses a serious safety risk 鈥� one that you had no way of knowing about.

It鈥檚 a high price to pay for what would generally be a very cheap product.

Such incidents have become more possible than ever because fast-growing global retailers such as Temu, AliExpress, eBay, Amazon, Kogan and others aren鈥檛 required to make sure the products they sell through third-party suppliers on their platforms are safe before selling them.

Online marketplaces can choose to sign up to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission鈥檚 voluntary Product Safety Pledge as a gesture of compliance, but if they make safety commitments, the ACCC has no power to make sure they鈥檙e actually following through on them.

The results of our most recent test of products bought from the above-mentioned platforms show what can happen when regulations don鈥檛 keep pace with accelerating developments in the digital marketplace.

Serious safety failures found in 糖心Vlog toy testing

We purchased 22 products suitable for children under 3, including rattles, teethers and whistles. Six of them had serious safety failures based on Australian mandatory standards, ranging from choking hazards to lack of safety warnings. These are design failures that could send your child to the hospital or worse. 

Our mechanical testing comes on the heels of the button battery safety testing we conducted earlier this year on children鈥檚 products bought from online marketplaces. This also revealed multiple safety failures. 

We also selected a further 18 painted and brightly coloured toys and tested them for chemical content, such as lead and cadmium; fortunately they all passed these tests.

Symptom of a larger issue

The failure to prevent online marketplaces from selling unsafe products is just part of the problem.

With no laws currently in place that require manufacturers or retailers to ensure products are safe before they go on sale in Australia, consumers become the unwitting guinea pigs 鈥� and often suffer the consequences.

The ACCC estimates that unsafe products cause tens of thousands of injuries and many hundreds of deaths every year in Australia, including products that have been recalled but remain in people鈥檚 homes.

Marketplaces remove dangerous products

After we got in touch with the marketplaces selling the toys with safety issues, they generally did the right thing.

A Temu spokesperson says the company 鈥渄oes not permit third-party sellers to list products that fail to meet applicable safety or regulatory requirements,” adding that the teether toy that failed our test had been removed before we contacted the company about it.

An Amazon spokesperson confirmed that the unsafe products had been removed after we flagged them, saying 鈥渁ll products offered in our store must comply with applicable laws, regulations and Amazon policies鈥�.

eBay also confirmed it had removed the dangerous products after we contacted them.

AliExpress rejected our claim that an unsafe baby rattle was for sale on its platform, saying it couldn鈥檛 find the item. But we found many similar rattles still available to order.

If there鈥檚 a problem with a purchase, customers are generally told by these global sites to take it up with the third-party seller, which is often based overseas and, in many cases, unreachable. In short, today鈥檚 digital marketplaces sell billions of cut-rate products of dubious quality and gladly take the money, but they take no responsibility for the safety of what they sell.

鈥淲hile these unsafe toys have now been removed from sale, they should never have been available for purchase at all. Until we introduce stronger product safety laws, online marketplaces will continue to be under no clear, legal obligation to ensure the products sold by third party suppliers on their platforms are safe, even for children,鈥� says 糖心Vlog director of campaigns and communications Andy Kelly.

鈥溙切腣log is continuing to call for stronger product safety laws which will make it illegal for all companies, including online marketplaces like AliExpress, Amazon, eBay and Temu, to sell unsafe products.”

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Australia theoretically became a safer place for children on 22 June 2022, when mandatory button battery safety standards came into effect.

Since then, manufacturers selling products containing button batteries in Australia have been required to secure battery compartments to prevent children from accessing them. They also have to undergo their own testing to make sure batteries are secured, and include warnings and emergency advice on packaging about the dangers of button batteries.

This product safety legislation was a world first, and it applies to retailers as well as manufacturers 鈥� but not to online marketplaces themselves when acting as an intermediary between the customer and a third-party supplier.

The impetus for this long overdue reform couldn’t have been more urgent, or more tragic. As of 2020, three deaths and at least 44 serious injuries had resulted from children ingesting button batteries in Australia. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) also reported in 2020 that an estimated one child a month is seriously injured after swallowing or inserting a button battery.

Bright, shiny and lolly-shaped, small children naturally want to put these bite-sized batteries in their mouths. Once that happens, they pose not only a choking hazard but can cause severe internal burns and tissue damage when lodged in any part of the body.

The risk is increased by the fact that medical professionals can misdiagnose symptoms and be slow to link a child’s worsening illness to a button battery ingestion.

Many products fail our test

Laws, of course, only work to the extent that businesses follow them. 糖心Vlog has conducted several battery button safety tests in our labs in recent years, and failures have been common. Last year, we reported on the results of our test of 15 common household products containing button batteries. Ten of the products failed to meet the mandatory standards. 

The focus of our most recent safety test was the online marketplaces Shein, AliExpress, Amazon, Kogan Marketplace and eBay.

We purchased five toys or novelty items from each site that contained button batteries 鈥� products that would likely be attractive to small children. The results once again show that adherence to the mandatory button battery safety standards is spotty at best, with online platforms failing to stop sellers from listing unsafe products. 

Amazon, eBay and Shein remove the products

We reported the results of our button battery safety tests to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) as well as the online marketplaces. 

When we alerted AliExpress about our findings, the company rejected them as ‘unsubstantiated’ within hours. When we appealed that decision, our appeal was rejected. Amazon, eBay and Shein removed the products from their sites shortly after we reported them. 

A Shein spokesperson tells 糖心Vlog the company “takes product safety very seriously and is committed to offering safe and reliable products to its customers”, adding that its code of conduct stipulates that vendors that sell products on its platform must comply with the laws of whichever country they’re sold in. 

In May 2023, the ACCC issued its first penalties for violations of the button battery standards against The Reject Shop and Dusk totalling around $240,000. The retailers were selling novelty Halloween products that failed to adhere to the safety standard. 

In October this year, the ACCC recalled three products with non-compliant button batteries. Two of them 鈥�  (sold by Oceana International) and  (sold at Coles supermarkets) 鈥� were Halloween themed. The third were  (sold by online retailer Shein).

The Wiggles sell thousands of non-compliant headbands

In more recent legal action, the ACCC compelled the famed Australian children’s musical group The Wiggles earlier this month to admit it had breached regulations by selling thousands of Emma Bow headbands that lacked mandatory button battery safety warnings. The headbands were recalled in August 2024 and The Wiggles have agreed to produce an episode of its podcast “Wiggle Talk 鈥� A Podcast For Parents”, which will cover the recall of the Emma Bow headband and discuss safety issues relating to button batteries and children’s toys. 

In two other cases this year, the ACCC issued eight infringement notices and $150,240 in penalties to Hungry Jack’s for supplying a Garfield-themed toy that didn’t comply with the safety standard, and commenced court proceedings against the retailer City Beach for selling 70 product lines with button batteries that were non-compliant.

The long road to regulation 

糖心Vlog has been campaigning on button battery safety since 2016, when we launched a petition in partnership with Kidsafe Queensland and The Parenthood calling on the government to introduce mandatory safety standards. This followed the deaths of four-year-old Summer Steer and 14-month-old Isabella Reese, both of whom had swallowed batteries. Isabella’s mum, Alison Burns, became a tireless advocate for mandatory standards following the death of her daughter, setting up an organisation called  to raise awareness and drive change. 

According to Queensland Health, around 20 children a week around Australia are taken to the hospital due to a suspected button battery incident. 

The ACCC issued a voluntary industry code for button battery safety, but it did little to reduce the risk of injury and death to children. Manufacturers generally ignored it. 

In 2019, we tested 17 common household items 鈥� including ear thermometers, kitchen and bathroom scales, and remote controls 鈥� against the voluntary standard. Ten had unsecured batteries that could have easily been accessed and swallowed by children.

In 2020, Australia recorded its third button battery death. Three-year-old Brittney Conway died after swallowing a button battery that became lodged in her oesophagus, burning a hole through to her aorta.

It was clear that self-regulation wasn’t working. But now that government regulation has been introduced, it’s also clear that mandatory standards are one thing, and universal compliance is another. 

“It’s disappointing that online marketplaces continue to undermine the effectiveness of strong mandatory standards by failing to ensure that the products they sell are compliant and safe,” says deputy director of campaigns and communications, Andy Kelly.

“That’s why 糖心Vlog is calling for stronger product safety laws that make it illegal for all companies to sell unsafe products 鈥� and online marketplaces should be no exception,” says Kelly.

The post Shein, AliExpress, eBay and Amazon failing on button battery safety appeared first on 糖心Vlog.

On this page:

• The sunscreens for kids that failed 糖心Vlog testing
• Tips for sun-safe babies and kids

We know that one of the most important elements of being sun safe is to regularly apply a SPF 50 or higher broad-spectrum water-resistant sunscreen to create a barrier between the sun and our skin, and this is particularly important for children.听

But choosing a sunscreen from the huge variety on offer, and knowing which one is best for your family, can be a confusing task.听

Kids have a higher risk of sunburn and skin damage due to their delicate skin, and exposure to UV radiation during their first 15 years greatly increases the risk of developing skin cancer later in life.听

There are plenty of sunscreens that are targeted towards parents and carers, specifically labelled as being suitable, safe or even specially designed for babies, kids and ‘juniors’. These can differ in various ways from standard sunscreens and may or may not be suitable for your child.听

Alarmingly, in recent 糖心Vlog testing, several sunscreens did not live up to their SPF claims, making it even more important to ensure you’re putting multiple sun-safe strategies in place.

Sun protection for kids

When it comes to sun protection, sunscreen is just one of the strategies experts advise we should be using, particularly when it comes to children.听

Most Australians are familiar with the Cancer Council’s Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek and Slide awareness campaign, which encourages us to Slip on a shirt, Slop on sunscreen, Slap on a hat, Seek shade, and Slide on some sunglasses to maximise sun protection and reduce the risk of skin cancer.听

We’re also advised to avoid sun exposure during the middle of the day when UV radiation levels are at their highest.听

Where physical barriers such as wraps, clothing, hats and shade cannot prevent exposure of skin to the sun, an SPF 50 or higher, broad-spectrum and water-resistant sunscreen should be used.听

Do you need a special ‘kids’ sunscreen?

Children aged over six months can generally use the same sunscreen as adults, but there are reasons to consider using a sunscreen specifically designed for kids, especially for babies and toddlers.听

These formulas, often marketed with fun, bright colours with ‘kids’ labelling, are just as protective, but can be much gentler on younger, more sensitive skin.听

SunSmart (a partnership between Vic Health and the Cancer Council Victoria) says: “Sensitive and toddler sunscreens avoid using ingredients and preservatives that may cause reactions in young skin. It is recommended you apply a small amount of the product on a small area of the child’s skin for a few days to check if the skin reacts before applying it to other areas.”听

Kid-friendly sunscreens also often come in roll-ons or sprays, which you may find easier to apply to a squirming toddler than a cream. But if you’re using a spray or aerosol sunscreen, be careful that you’re evenly applying the correct dose.

Chemical vs physical sunscreens

There are two main types of sunscreens, which differ based on their active ingredients:

• Physical sunscreen (also known as mineral sunscreen) contains zinc oxide or titanium dioxide as its active ingredients. These create a physical barrier on the skin to deflect or scatter UV rays away from your skin.听
• Chemical sunscreen absorbs UV rays and stops it from penetrating your skin. Common active ingredients in this type of sunscreen are homosalate and octocrylene. Chemical sunscreens can cause skin irritation.

Mineral-based sunscreens containing titanium dioxide or zinc oxide are considered to be the safest option for babies under six months, as they offer protection from UV light, yet very little is absorbed through the surface of the skin.听

They tend to leave a white residue on the skin (think of the white or fluoro stripes from zinc sticks adorning kids’ noses on the beach), but this is easily washed off.听

Many parents opt for physical sunscreens for older children, too, and there are plenty of sunscreens of this type marketed as being family-friendly.听听

Concerns about endocrine disruptors

There’s also concern that some chemical sunscreens are endocrine disruptors 鈥� that is, they have hormonal effects in humans. These include oxybenzone, octyl methoxycinnamate, homosalate and 4-MBC.听

While this activity has been shown in animals and tissue tests, the doses used in testing are vastly greater than the amount used for human sun protection.听

Sunscreens are regulated in Australia by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) and their ingredients must be approved and assessed for quality and safety.

The sunscreens for kids that failed 糖心Vlog testing

糖心Vlog has tested 20 popular sunscreens, from a range of widely available and commonly purchased brands at different price points, to see whether the sun protection factor (SPF) claims made on each product are legitimate.

Alarmingly, 16 of the 20 sunscreens we tested failed to match their stated claims of SPF 50 or SPF 50+.听

Four of the sunscreens we tested were products marketed specifically for children. Only one, the Cancer Council Kids Sunscreen 50+, passed our testing with a reported SPF of 52.

The following sunscreens marketed for children failed to meet their claims:听

• Banana Boat Baby Zinc Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50+ 鈥� returned a test result of SPF 28.
• Cancer Council Kids Clear Zinc 50+ 鈥� returned a test result of SPF 33.
• Nivea Sun Kids Ultra Protect and Play Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50+ 鈥� returned a test result of SPF 41.

See the full list of sunscreens that failed to meet their SPF claims.

Any sunscreen is better than no sunscreen

It’s important to note that using any sunscreen is better than using no sunscreen, especially when it comes to children over six months old.

SPF is a measure of how effective sunscreen is at protecting your skin from UVB rays. If it takes five minutes of sun exposure for your skin to start burning, applying an SPF 50 sunscreen protects you for 50 times that amount of time 鈥� in this case 250 minutes. Sunscreen with an SPF of 30 would protect you 鈥� ideally 鈥� for 180 minutes, a sunscreen with an SPF of 25 for 125 minutes and so on.听

So a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or even 20 still offers a significant amount of sun protection.听

Even if you have one of the brands above in your bathroom cupboard, you should still continue to use it. Just be aware that it may not deliver the level of sun protection it claims on its packaging and you should adjust your reapplication schedule accordingly.

Tips for sun-safe babies and kids

For babies

• Keep babies in the shade as often as possible.
• If it’s impossible to avoid the sun, make sure they are only exposed for a few minutes.
• If you can’t cover your baby completely with clothing when they are in the sun, use sunscreen designed for sensitive skin or for children, and apply to exposed areas. Be sure to do a patch test first (on a small area of skin) if it’s a brand you haven’t used before to ensure it doesn’t cause a reaction.
• Be prepared when you go out 鈥� carry suitable clothing, hats and sunscreen so you aren’t caught out. Pack a sun shade/shelter for the beach and/or park, and avoid heading out at peak UV times.
• Role model the behaviour 鈥� kids and even babies are more likely to be happy to wear sun-safe clothing and hats if you do.听

For older children

• On days that will have UV levels of 3 or higher you should make sure your child is wearing sunscreen when they go to school, and preferably that they pack some in their bag to reapply themselves. UV levels and sun protection times are reported in the weather page of Australian daily newspapers, on the Bureau of Meteorology website, and on some radio and mobile weather apps.
• If children are very active and will be sweating or swimming, ensure you choose a water-resistant sunscreen and reapply regularly.

For everyone

• Put on sunscreen 15鈥�20 minutes before going outside.
• Make sure you use enough sunscreen 鈥� you need at least a teaspoon (5mL) for each leg, arm, your back and so on, and more if you’re bigger.
• If you’re sweating heavily or rubbing your face, you’ll need to reapply every two hours. If you’ve been in the water, dry yourself and reapply.

The post What is the best sunscreen for babies and kids? appeared first on 糖心Vlog.

Consumer regulators are urging anyone with the recalled Best&Less Light-Up Clog Shoes or Crocs LED Jibbitz Charms to stop using the products immediately and keep them out of reach of children.听

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) product safety arm issued the recall notice this week after finding these two products do not comply with the mandatory information standards for products containing button batteries (also called coin batteries).

The Best&Less Light-Up Clog Shoes were sold in green with a dinosaur light and pink with a star light. The light component can separate from the shoe and cause the batteries to detach. The clogs were available for sale at Best&Less stores nationally and online from 1 September 2024 to 22 May 2025.

The Crocs LED Jibbitz Charms were sold at 126 different retail stores and on the Crocs website. The recall affects 102 charms that were sold between 22 June 2022 and 19 April 2024.

Parents or carers may not be aware that both of these products contain button batteries, which can cause serious injury to young children if ingested.听

What you should do if you own these products

Best&Less Light-up Clog Shoes

Visit the听听on the Product Safety Australia website for more information.

The ACCC advises:

1. Stop using the product immediately and keep out of reach of children.
2. Return to any Best & Less store for a refund.

Crocs LED Jibbitz Charms

Visit the on the Product Safety Australia website for more information, including the full list of retailers and charms affected.

The ACCC advises:

1. Stop using the product immediately and keep it out of reach of children.
2. Dispose of the product in accordance with local requirements for disposal of batteries.
3. Visit 听for detailed instructions on how to request a refund or visit the place of purchase.

Products still failing to meet standards

The recall is the latest of many that consumer regulators have issued for products not complying with button battery safety rules, after world-first standards came into force in 2022.

Under the changes championed by 糖心Vlog, items with button or coin batteries are required to come with specific warnings and meet certain specifications.听

The standards require secure battery compartments, child-resistant packaging, and warnings on products and batteries.听

The ACCC says the standards were not met in the case of the Best&Less light-up clogs and Crocs LED Jibbitz Charms.

“It’s concerning that two years after mandatory button battery safety standards came into effect, we are still seeing these kinds of compliance failures,” says 糖心Vlog campaigns and communications director Rosie Thomas.听

“It’s particularly concerning to learn that an incident has occurred, given these products are commonly purchased by parents for their young children. We all should be able to trust that what we buy for our kids is safe.”

The dangers of button batteries

Button batteries can be found in a broad range of toys and household items, and multiple children have died after swallowing batteries they had retrieved from insecure packaging.

Once ingested, button batteries can cause choking, severe burns and internal bleeding.

In 2020, following campaigning by 糖心Vlog and parents, Australia became the first country in the world to introduce mandatory safety and information standards for products containing these batteries.

As well as mandating secure battery compartments and testing, the standards also require warnings and emergency advice to be put on the packaging of products containing these batteries.

Thomas says these warnings play an important role in helping parents and carers keep their young ones safe.

“The recalls also highlight why we need to reboot our entire product safety system. 糖心Vlog continues to call for a general safety provision that requires businesses to sell products that are safe,” she says.听

The post Urgent recall over button battery dangers: Best&Less clogs and Crocs Jibbitz charms appeared first on 糖心Vlog.

Consumer regulators are urging anyone with a “Burping Garfield” toy handed out with children’s meals at Hungry Jack’s to return it to the fast food giant.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) product safety arm issued the recall notice this week after finding the toy didn’t come with required battery warnings.

The toy, which was being distributed to promote a new Garfield movie, was available at Hungry Jack’s stores nationwide between 20 May and 30 May 2024.

The recall is the latest of many that consumer regulators have issued for products not complying with button battery safety rules, after world-first standards came into force.

Under the changes championed by 糖心Vlog, items with button or coin batteries are required to come with specific warnings; the ACCC says this information wasn’t included with the Garfield toy.

“It’s concerning that two years after mandatory button battery safety standards came into effect, we are still seeing these kinds of compliance failures,” says 糖心Vlog campaigns and communications director Rosie Thomas.

The dangers of button batteries

Button batteries can be found in a broad range of toys and household items and multiple children have died after swallowing batteries they had retrieved from insecure packaging.

Once ingested, button batteries can cause choking, severe burns and internal bleeding.

In 2020, following campaigning by 糖心Vlog and parents, Australia became the first country in the world to introduce mandatory safety and information standards for products containing these batteries.

As well as mandating secure battery compartments and testing, the standards also require warnings and emergency advice to be put on the packaging of products containing these batteries.

Thomas says these warnings play an important role in helping parents and carers keep their young ones safe.

“Hearing about dangerous products being served alongside children’s meals is very alarming, so we’re pleased to see the regulator warn people about this safety failure.”

Customers urged to return toy

The ACCC says anyone with the Garfield toy should immediately stop using the product and place it out of reach of children. They should then return it to their nearest Hungry Jack’s, where they can receive a battery-free replacement at no extra cost.

In a statement, Hungry Jack’s says it has “implemented immediate steps” to halt distribution of the toy and is working with the product supplier and authorities to address the situation.

While Thomas welcomes these warnings, she says more must be done to protect Australians from unsafe products.

“糖心Vlog encourages consumer affairs ministers across the country to prioritise the introduction of a market-wide general safety provision,” she says.听

“This will mean manufacturers and retailers will have to make sure that the products they sell are safe 鈥� something not currently required in Australia.”

The post Hungry Jack’s Garfield toy recalled in latest button battery safety fail appeared first on 糖心Vlog.