Two manufacturing companies have been fined for selling hot water bottles that did not comply with safety standards.
File photo: Hot water bottle. Photo: creative commons – pixabay – alsterkoralle / 83 images
Paramount Merchandise Company and ND Import & Export both plead guilty to supplying hot water bottles as well as children’s toys that presented misleading or false representations.
A lack of clear labelling and instructions to prevent risk of serious injury or burns as well as a failure to meet standard pressure testing were the defects outlined.
The commerce commission first investigated ND Import and Export in 2018 and found the retailer company had been supplying products that were unsafe and endangered consumers.
This included children’s toys that were dangerous due to removable parts or batteries that increased a risk of choking as well as two types of hot water bottles which had been banned from sale in New Zealand.
The retailer was found guilty in the Hamilton district court earlier this year and fined $36,000.
During sentencing the Judge P G Mabey QC criticised ND Import and Export’s lack of robust compliance processes.
“ND is of moderate size but nonetheless was well equipped to implement an in-house robust compliance regime but did not do so.”
This investigation led to the wholesaler company Paramount also being investigated for supplying the hot water bottles that failed to meet the Unsafe Goods Notice.
The hot water bottles neglected to state the required permanent markings, written instructions and plastic packaging which outlined the correct suffocation warnings.
Paramount was found guilty on 5 charges under the fair trading act and hence fined $104,000.
Judge R J Earwaker said the labelling stated on the products did not comply with the right standards and that the company was capable of improving this.
“Paramount is a sufficiently large enough business to have a robust compliance scheme” they said.
The chair of the commerce commission, Anna Rawlings said it was important that all manufacturing groups were familiar with their legal obligations to help protect consumers and that products were compliant before being put on sale.
“Product safety requirements help protect consumers against the risk of physical harm that can occur if they are supplied with non-compliant products – in this case the risk of burns caused by the misuse or failure of hot water bottles.”
“Importers, wholesalers and retailers all need to research and familiarise themselves with their legal obligations and ensure that they have systems in place to check that their products comply before they offer them for sale.”
The hot water bottles supplied by both companies were withdrawn and recalled from sale.
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