Safety and The Consumer Safety Product Improvement Act (CPSIA or HR4040)
The CPSIA is a new law intended to remove lead in all children's products. The Consumer Safety Product Commission (CPSC) has determined that the intent of this law is to be retroactive.
This obviously has serious impact on the 2nd hand market, including thrifts, consignment, resale and libraries among others. As a second-hand seller we are not required to test but we can not sell items that exceed the new limits.
As a mother and a retailer, the safety of the items that I sell in my store has always been a top priority. I am selective with a special focus on higher-end, brand name clothing and toys. We also have never sold any metal jewelry due to the rate of occurrence of high lead levels.
While testing each item is simply not physically feasible, I do take seriously the requirements of this new law and the safety of your children. What we are doing includes limited testing of select items to provide a guideline, networking with other store owners to share information, and contacting manufacturers to learn about their production history. And of course, as always, we stay current with CPSC's recalls. All of our new products are certified to meet the new requirements.
Based on the information we have gathered we are unable to take some items, particularly those made of vinyl (unless purchased after Feb. 10 2009) which can (but mostly do not) contain lead as a stabilizer.
If you have any questions about the law or the safety of shopping 2nd hand I'd be happy to talk with you. Just drop me an email or drop by.
Wendy Powell
Owner, Childish Things
