Amazon Faces Scrutiny Over Dangerous Products

AMAZON IS IN TROUBLE

Despite their best efforts to keep their customers informed and protected against third-party sales of unsafe products to consumers, Amazon has been 'deemed responsible for dangerous or faulty products sold by third-parties on Amazon.com' after a unanimous decision by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, otherwise known as the CPSC.

The U.S. Regulator claims that over 400,000 products in the lawsuit include items like carbon monoxide detectors that don't work, kids' pajamas that are highly flammable, and even hairdryers that do not include electrocution protection. They have been ordered to recall those 400,000 items.

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NOT DOING ENOUGH TO PROTECT CONSUMERS

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said that Amazon failed to inform the public about hazardous products, and didn't do enough to encourage their customers to get rid of those products, either by returning them or destroying them, leaving those customers at substantial risk of injury.

This battle is nothing new to Amazon. Amazon says that the marketplace is made up of 60% Independent Sellers. Where liability lies, with Independent Sellers, Amazon, or both.

AMAZON IS DISAPPOINTED IN THE DECISION

Amazon is disappointed in the decision that the CPSC made. Amazon has told them that they are NOT a distributor of products 'within the meaning of the Consumer Product Safety Act," and because of that they are NOT responsible for third-party item sales.

An Amazon Spokesperson spoke in defense of Amazon, saying:

"In the event of a product recall in our store,
we remove impacted products promptly after receiving actionable information from recalling agencies, and we continue to seek ways to innovate on behalf of our customers.

Our recall alerts service also ensures our customers are notified of important product safety information fast, and the recall process is effective and efficient.

We stand behind the safety of every product in our store through our A-to-Z Guarantee, regardless of whether it is sold by Amazon or one of our selling partners. We have proactive measures in place to prevent unsafe products, and we continuously monitor the listings in our store.

If we discover an unsafe product available for sale, we address the issue immediately, and refine our processes."

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT FOR AMAZON?

Because of the new ruling, Amazon now has to work WITH the CSPC. Amazon must submit their plans to notify their customers about the products that are subject to the order and how what steps they will be taking to remove them from the marketplace.