CPSC has recently established a Special Investigations Unit (SIU) in the Office of Compliance. This major new initiative is aimed at discovering and developing leads about hazardous products from a wide range of sources. The SIU will enhance CPSC's current compliance and recall activities.
The unit aims to serve as an early warning system for previously unidentified hazards. It will look for information similar to that which has led in the past to significant CPSC actions such as recalls of dangerous cribs, bunk beds and gas products.
A specific example of the type of information CPSC is looking for is the report it received from a Dallas medical examiner about infant suffocations from bean bag cushions. His report led to an inquiry in which the agency found that infant bean bag cushions had caused 35 deaths. The information served as the basis for a recall and subsequent ban of the cushions.
The SIU is identifying sources of information to supplement those that are required under the law or that the agency has relied on in the past. Under the law, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers of consumer products must report hazardous consumer products to CPSC.
The SIU will seek reports about potentially hazardous products from a variety of sources, including injured parties or their representatives, public and private health officials, medical examiners, fire departments, customs agents, or safety professionals. In addition, it will solicit information from independent engineering consultants, private accident investigators, fire marshals, insurance companies, state and local consumer protection offices, state attorneys general, fire and rescue personnel, consumer advocacy groups, and the court systems.
This information will be added to other injury data collected at CPSC and used to identify potential safety problems. It will also be entered into the agency's national data base to be used by CPSC staff and made available to the public through the National Injury Information Clearinghouse.
CPSC staff negotiate almost all recalls with consumer product manufacturers, distributors, and/or retailers. Since 1973, CPSC has obtained recalls of more than 1,500 defective consumer products (nearly 220 million individual units). During that same period, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers recalled another 2,300 products (a total of 168 million individual units) that violated CPSC safety standards.
Information about a potentially hazardous consumer product can be provided to the SIU by contacting Carol Cave at 1-800-638-8095, extension 1515, or by sending information to: SIU, Office of Compliance, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814/ Fax: SIU, 301-504-0359.