With 6.6 million consumer products still in circulation the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission wants the federal government to implement a “new safety duty”.
The changes, the ACCC, would enable the regulator to better enforce businesses to take “reasonable steps” to ensure their products are sold as safe, given 650 individual products – including cars and their component parts – are put under recall every year.
The ACCC says roughly only half of all recalled products are returned by consumers, meaning one in four Australians are at risk of injury or death.
The announcement comes as Volkswagen Australia issues a recall on over 67,000 vehicles for potential cracks in tr
ansmission pressure regulators, Mercedes-Benz Australia recalls 107 CLS cars for a potential electrical fault, and Mazdda Australia recalls over 35,000 diesel CX-5s, Mazda6s and Mazda 3s for potential “intake shutter valve” blockages.
As the regulator joins an OECD campaign to increase awareness for “making sure recalled products are removed from homes”, it wants more people to register for Product Safety Australia alerts.”
In Australia, the ACCC says two people die and 145 people are injured every day by unsafe consumer products, reaching approximately 780 deaths and 52,000 injuries every year from unsafe consumer products, at an economic cost of at least $5 billion for medical, lost salary and reduced productivity.
“It is really important that people sign up to ACCC product safety alerts… so they stay informed about recalls and can act to remove unsafe products from their homes,” ACCC commissioner Sarah Court says.
“We believe prevention is better than cure, and that legally requiring businesses to take steps to ensure the safety of their products before they enter the market is needed to protect Australian consumers,” she explains.
“We also have the biggest recall in Australian history underway: potentially deadly Takata airbags can still found in about half a million cars,” Court points out.
“It is vital that consumers don’t ignore recall information if they receive a letter, email or text from a manufacturer,” she adds.
