Serious injuries prompt Black Friday and Christmas safe toy shopping advice for Oxfordshire residents
Parents are being urged to take extra care when buying toys this Black Friday and in the lead to Christmas, as part of a safety campaign from Oxfordshire County Council’s trading standards.
As well as highlighting some top shopping tips, the initiative draws attention to specific dangers posed by small, high-powered magnets that can be found in toys, puzzles, and some craft items – with concerns that they are also being used as fake tongue and body piercings and jewellery, popularised on social media.
Councillor Neil Fawcett, Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Services and Safety, said: “Christmas should be a happy time for families, and a joy for children as they enthusiastically open their gifts. Please follow our safety advice, so you’re confident every gift is safe, with correct instructions and labelling.”
Here are top tips from Oxfordshire County Council’s trading standards:
Know who you are buying from
Wherever shopping, remember reputation matters. Is the seller widely recognised for safe and reliable toys?
Always read warnings and instructions
Toys must be clearly marked with age restrictions, which are based on risks such as choking hazards. Always follow the age recommendations.
Consider special needs
Children with special needs might be more vulnerable, so keep this in mind when shopping.
Avoid toys with small parts
They can be a choking hazard.
Look out for strangulation hazards
Loose ribbons on toys and costumes can pose risks to young children.
Check the toys are for children
Magnets can look like toys. Keep them away from children.
Compare the sellers
Bargains may be too good to be true. Compare the toy’s price with other sellers. If it is a fraction of the cost, it is likely to be counterfeit.
Check for button batteries
Ensure that any button batteries in a toy are safely behind a screwed down flap.
Check for product recalls
See if the toy has been recalled by checking:
product recall campaign website.
Check before you wrap
Toys must be clearly marked with age restrictions, which are based on risks such as choking hazards. Always follow the age recommendations.
Small, high-powered magnets - Be aware!
As well as posing a potential choking hazard, such magnets can cause serious injury if swallowed. A magnet safety poster for schools, and other information and resources are available on the government’s website.
Jody Kerman, Oxfordshire County Council’s Head of Trading Standards, said: “Black Friday and the Christmas shopping period can be very busy times. Our advice is to take time to stop and think – check that the toy is everything it seems and that it is appropriate for the person receiving it.
“In the case of small magnets, these can be very attractive to children. Most magnets are not toys. Keep your home free of such magnets and if you think your child has swallowed a magnet, take them straight to the nearest A&E or call 999 for an ambulance.”
Anyone with concerns about the safety or labelling of toys can contact Oxfordshire County Council’s trading standards through the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133.
Notes
Get as much information on the seller as you can, especially if you are buying from an online marketplace. Not everything sold on an online platform is supplied by them. If the actual supplier is not based in the UK, you may face heightened risks.
Small, high-powered magnets - Be aware! (further details)
As well as posing a potential choking hazard, such magnets can cause serious injury if swallowed. When two or more of the magnets are swallowed, they can stick together, causing damage to the digestive system, trapping parts of the digestive system between the magnets, cutting off blood flow and rapidly killing intestinal tissue. The attraction of the magnets within the body, can also create holes between intestinal segments, causing serious infections, lifelong digestive disorders or even death.
Magnets can be accidentally swallowed during inappropriate use or found by younger children and then swallowed. Due to their size and the quantity supplied at any one time, it can be impossible to keep track of them within the home.
A magnet safety poster for schools, and other information and resources are available on the government’s website.
Data collected by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, from just a small number of hospitals, has identified over 200 cases of children requiring hospital treatment since 2019, with the number of children in the older age groups causing increasing concern.
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