Ramco Trading Corp., Inc. To Pay $15,000 To Settle Civil Penalty Case

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has voted to accept a civil penalty settlement agreement from Ramco Trading Corp., Inc. (Ramco). Under this agreement Ramco will pay $15,000 to resolve allegations that, in May and September 1991, it failed to comply with the Small Parts Regulation issued pursuant to the Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA).

This is the first civil penalty obtained by CPSC under the FHSA, which was amended in 1990 to include a civil penalty provision in an effort to make toys safer for children. As part of an ongoing enforcement program, CPSC staff is conducting a substantial number of civil penalty investigations of other firms that may have failed to comply with the Small Parts Regulation.

Ramco, located in Hialeah, FL, imported 1,920 toys named "Teach Me Teddy" which present a choking hazard, and 3,200 toys named "Funny Dog Train" or "Dog-Play & Learn" which present choking and aspiration hazards. According to Ramco, the toys were intended for export to other countries. A small quantity of the toys were sold in Florida by Ramco. The toys are no longer being sold by Ramco. Consumers should destroy and discard any of these toys in their possession. Ramco believes that only a small quantity of the Teach Me Teddy, Funny Dog Train, and Dog-Play & Learn toys fail to comply with the Small Parts Regulation, as the result of inadequate quality control. The Commission is not aware of any incidents or injuries involving any of the toys.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission seeks civil penalties to deter violations of the laws it administers as part of its mission to protect the public from unreasonable risks of injury and death associated with consumer products. The Commission's objective is to help reduce the estimated 28.6 million injuries and 21,700 deaths that occur reach year with the 15,000 different types of consumer products within CPSC's jurisdiction.