Dangerous products sold online due to legal loopholes, consumer group warns

Potentially dangerous toys and other products are finding their way into Australians homes due to legal loopholes that mean online retail giants may take no responsibility for the items they stock.

Products that may already be banned in Australia are being sold by retail giants including Amazon, Temu, AliExpress and Ebay, consumer group CHOICE has warned.

These include fake novelty cigarettes that create a puff of smoke, cigarette lighters that look like toys and removable tongue studs that can easily come loose and become choking hazard.

Also of serious concern are flammable garments and products containing small choking hazards and potentially deadly button batteries, which may be in breach of safety standards.

Due to the legal loopholes regarding online sales, nothing generally gets done about the breaches until someone is hurt, CHOICE director of campaigns Andy Kelly said.

Legal loophole for banned products in Australia

Mr Kelly described the scale of unsafe products for sale as frightening; particularly those designed for infants and children.

CHOICE has issued a complaint to the consumer watchdog and is urging the Australian government to take action against retailers who continue to sell dangerous products.

However, Mr Kelly said online retailers may claim only to act as an intermediary, shifting blame onto third-party suppliers that could exist anywhere in the world.

"That gap in the law really allows online marketplaces to continue to get away with selling these unsafe products with little consequence," he told AAP.

Calls to introduce general safety provision

CHOICE is calling on the Commonwealth government to introduce a general safety provision that would place obligations on all businesses to ensure the products they sell are safe.

Similar provisions already exist in the European Union, offering an existing framework to work from.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recently took legal action against Amazon for allegedly stocking unicorn backpacks for toddlers that failed to include a warning they contained button batteries.

Mr Kelly described the case as an interesting test of whether Amazon would be held accountable.

On Tuesday, the ACCC said it was also investigating the online supply of games and toys containing potentially deadly small high-powered magnets, despite the magnets being banned.

Several chess-style board games sold in Australia, including "magnetic chess" and "magnetic battle chess", contain small magnets that if swallowed can cause life-threatening injuries.

The consumer watchdog sent take-down requests for the products to Amazon, eBay, Kogan and Fruugo, said ACCC deputy chair Catriona Lowe.

Each website has since removed the listed items from their online stores.

A statement from Amazon says customer safety is its top priority and AI models and dedicated teams are used to continuously monitor its listed products to identify and remove any that may pose a risk.

Other online retailers mentioned have been contacted for comment.

Apart from eBay, each website has also offered a refund to customers.