• The Trade Inspection Authority has checked whether the baby beds, cradles, playpens and baby carriers are safe.
• Inspectors examined 343 batches of products and detected irregularities in almost 35 per cent of them.
• Doubts were raised over incorrect marking and insufficient instructions, and in several cases – also over faulty design.

To the order of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK), the Trade Inspection Authority carried out a control of furniture and other goods to be used by young children for sleeping and resting. Inspectors paid particular attention to safety and marking.

The audit was carried out in all the voivodeships, in the fourth quarter of 2017. Inspectors looked at various types of children's beds, cradles, playpens and baby carriers. They checked 343 batches of products. The majority of the 83 entrepreneurs submitted to control were mainly stores, but the inspectors also visited wholesalers, manufacturers, first distributors and an importer.

As a result, the Trade Inspection Authority impugned 118 batches of products, or 34.4 per cent of those submitted to control. Examples of irregularities are:

• no support for the baby's head in baby carriers,
• too large gaps between the strips at the bed bottom,
• in the case of baby carriers, no information about the weight or age of the child,
• lack of instructions, warnings or manufacturer's data.

Most of the irregularities involving the bad marking were corrected by the entrepreneurs during the inspection. In 6 cases, UOKiK initiated administrative proceedings. So far, one of them has ended - according to the UOKiK decision, the manufacturer of baby beds must withdraw them from the market.

If you are buying a baby bed, cradle, playpen or baby carrier, then check whether:

• there are no sharp edges or corners, burrs, protruding nails etc.,
• there are no open ends of pipes,
• there are no small elements that the child could detach on his/her own and swallow,
• the rocking system has a locking mechanism and can only be moved by direct pushing, and never by an electric motor,
• moving the bottom of a bed or a playpen from a higher to a lower position is possible only with the use of tools,
• baby carrier suitable for children up to 4 months of age has a head support.

Do you have any doubts? Contact the Trade Inspection Authority.

The audit report is available only in Polish.

Additional information for the consumers:

Phone 801 440 220 or 22 290 89 16 – consumer helpline
E-mail: porady@dlakonsumentow.pl
Branches of Consumer Federation
Consumer spokespersons – in your town or county

Additional information for the media:

UOKiK Press Office
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Phone: +48 695 902 088, +48 22 55 60 314
E-mail: biuroprasowe@uokik.gov.pl
Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL