Dirt-cheap toys imported into the US can be dangerous, the group says. Here’s what you need to know

If you’re tempted to buy kids’ toys online at rock-bottom prices this holiday season, consumer advocates want you to think twice – and maybe three times. That $8 gift may not meet U.S. safety standards designed to protect children.

“Many people think that just because something is for sale, it must be safe,” Teresa Murray of consumer watchdog Public Interest Research Group tells NPR. “And that is incredibly wrong.”

As a spokesperson for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission puts it, “If the price seems too good to be true, it may be a sign that the product is not authentic and may be unsafe.”

Potential risks from children’s items range from exposure to lead and phthalate to choking hazards from small parts or button batteries. Flammability is also a concern.

How do these competitively priced items reach American homes?

“If you buy a toy or other product online and it is shipped directly to you from another country, it is generally not inspected before it arrives in your mailbox,” Murray wrote in PIRGs. Problems in Toyland report for 2024.

Items are more likely to be hidden from scrutiny, Murray says, if they are shipped under what critics say is a loophole in U.S. law. It’s the same one that online retailers have used to send cheap clothing to the US – and that smugglers use to ship fentanyl and counterfeit drugs into the US. For toy sellers, the strategy helps foreign companies undercut U.S. retailers and circumvent safety requirements.

The law is called de minimis. Even though that name implies something small, it’s a big deal. Since 2014, the number of shipments entering the United States annually under the de minimis exemption has increased 140 million to 1 billion in 2023, according to the White House. According to US Customs and Border Protection, they are now responsible for the majority of cargo entering the US, and the flooding is only increasing. The agency processes approximately 4 million de minimis shipments every day.

Many of the shipments come from China – and Murray emphasizes that many Chinese imports, including toys, are not a problem.

“Only a small percentage were considered unsafe, and those are mostly sold directly to consumers or enter the country through de minimis shipments,” she wrote in her report.

What is de minimis?

The de minimis exception started as a way to let travelers and businesses avoid taxes and duties when shipping items of little value.

About 100 countries have de minimis thresholds; the amounts vary around the world. In the European Union, shipments worth less than 150 euros (approximately $160) may be eligible. The level used to be $200 in the US, but in 2016 it rose to $800 – one of the highest in the world – when then-President Barack Obama signed the agreement. Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act.

Companies that focus on the de minimis exclusion use it as a tax-free pipeline to the US – and can pay less in taxes than a US company selling a similar product.

The rule is part of the success of retailers like China’s Temu, which bases its business model on streamlining the connection between manufacturers and consumers.

The use – and abuse – of de minimis is increasing

Unscrupulous exporters aggressively abuse de minimis. For example, they vastly undervalue items, or list many items as a single shipment worth less than $800.

In one egregious case last year, a dismantled helicopter was shipped from Venezuela to the seaport of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, under de minimis rules, described as “personal property,” according to a recent investigation. Customs and Border Protection Report.

Faced with screening a flood of incoming packages and freight labeled de minimis, the CPSC says it is working with CBP to assess the potential risks of shipments, identifying which packages are most likely not to meet U.S. requirements to fulfil.

“All children’s products and toys are mandatory certificates of conformityconfirming that these products meet our standards,” the CPSC spokesperson told NPR via email. Products shipped under the de minimis exemption are still subject to inspection and enforcement, she added.

Still, the agency urges consumers to be wary of potential dangers to children when purchasing items online, especially if the price is shockingly low.

What can consumers do?

First, the experts say: don’t stray from companies you know and trust, even if an ad for a toy promises a more attractive price.

“We rarely come out and say, ‘You shouldn’t do this.’ But this is one of the exceptions,” says Murray, who warns of the lure of rock-bottom prices from unknown foreign retailers that advertise heavily on social media and in search results.

“We strongly believe that people who shop online need to be much more careful about where they actually buy,” she adds. “They don’t work with a U.S. retailer or distributor. And you just don’t have that middleman looking after your interests. So we urge people not to shop through ads you see on social media.”

The CPSC agrees that consumers should know who they are buying from.

“Even if they visit a well-known online site, look for ‘sold by’ information,” the CPSC spokesperson said. “If you don’t recognize the seller, you may want to do more research or select a different product.”

Consumers can also check if the toy is subject to a CPSC recall and view reviews on the SaferProducts.gov site. And be sure to carefully examine all images of toys, including the label and packaging, to avoid unsafe or counterfeit products.

“It’s just a mess,” Murray says. “I mean, there can’t be anything more important than our kids.”

The efforts of both parties are pushing for change

Proponents of de minimis say it allows commerce to flow smoothly, at a low cost to businesses and consumers. That includes John Pickel, senior director of international supply chain policy at the National Foreign Trade Council, who notes that de minimis shipments are subject to the same federal screening and enforcement requirements as higher value shipments.

Pickel warns that imposing new limits on de minimis would cause billions of dollars in damage, citing a recent ruling working paper from researchers at Yale and UCLA who predicted that abolishing de minimis would hurt low-income communities. But critics of de minimis say it hurts those same communities by making it easier for unreliable and potentially dangerous products to reach them.

“De minimis is a loophole for cheap – and sometimes dangerous – Chinese goods,” said Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., in a statement to NPR. “Congress must protect American consumers from harmful Chinese trade practices, of which de minimis is the most egregious of all, and level the playing field for small businesses.”

Cassidy has introduced bills to change de minimis rules, including a bill co-sponsored by Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. Both senators plan to try again in the next Congress.

The White House recently introduced new rules to combat the spread of the virus fire hose of de minimis importsciting “China-founded e-commerce platforms.” And in its annual report to Congress, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission called up ending permanent normal trade relations with China – a status reserved for US allies.

The panel said Congress should eliminate the de minimis exemption for imported items purchased online. It also urged lawmakers to increase resources at CBP to help it enforce the rules.

Copyright 2024 NPR