Safety regulators lack powers to act
The government’s product safety regulator isn’t able to fully assess risks to consumers from items on sale online and is too slow in issuing warnings to the public, a review found.
The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) is not keeping up with changes to the marketplace, particularly online, and does not have the data it needs to prioritise its response to consumer risks, the National Audit Office (NAO) found.
A study on products from online marketplaces found 66% failed safety tests. The NAO said most of the regulator’s responses to national incidents have been reactive. In one case concerning the risk from swallowing small, high-powered magnets, the OPSS only intervened in February this year, despite problems first being identified long before the OPSS was established in 2018, the report said.
Last month an 11-year-old boy had to undergo surgery after swallowing magnets. Five tiny magnetic balls were discovered in Ellis Tripp’s intestines and bowel.
It is feared the boy, from Worcester, may have been performing a Tiktok craze which sees people put the balls in their mouths.
Mum Amy Clarke, 31, said: “Magneto Beads are deadly if swallowed.
“They even have them in educational/ childcare settings for children to play with. Destroy them!”
NAO chief Gareth Davies said: “Regulators do not have the powers to enforce online and the OPSS lacks data and intelligence. The OPSS must use its review of the product safety regime to ensure it is fit for the future.”