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Fisher Price Recall - Toys Tainted with Lead Paint

Fisher Price Inc. issued a recall for over 1.5 million toys on August 1, 2007.  The toys involved in the Fisher Price recall, which were made in China, were manufactured with lead paint.  The Fisher Price recall included popular Sesame Street, Dora the Explorer and Deigo toys.  More than 80 different Fisher Price toys manufactured by the East Aurora, NY company were involved in the recall.  

Fisher Price was aware of the lead paint contamination in July, but the problem was not made public immediately.  The company said that the recall was “fast-tracked”, and that most of the defective toys were quarantined before they made it into stores.  However, nearly a million lead-tainted Fisher Price toys were shipped to stores, and possibly into the hands of children.  The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) allowed Fisher Price to withhold details of the recall so that stores would have time to remove the toys from their shelves.  Fisher Price also said that the delay allowed the company to set up a consumer hotline.

Lead Exposure
Lead exposure is especially dangerous for children under 6 because they are still growing, and their brains are developing.  Small children often put toys in their mouths, and sometimes inadvertently eat paint chips.  If lead is ingested, it can cause behavioral problems, learning disabilities, seizures and even death.  The recalled Fisher Price toys contained lead.

The symptoms of lead poisoning often mimic other illnesses.  They include irritability; loss of appetite; weight loss; sluggishness; abdominal pain; vomiting; constipation and pallor from anemia.  There are often no signs that a child has been exposed to lead, and a blood test is the only way to determine if someone is suffering from lead poisoning.  Mild cases of lead poisoning are treated by ending the lead exposure and having the patient submit to follow-up blood tests.  A treatment called Chelation Therapy is used when children test positive for high levels of lead in their blood.

Lead has been virtually banned from the US since the 1980s.  Under current regulations, children’s products with more than 0.6 percent lead accessible to the user are subject to recall.

Fisher Price Recall Details
The CPSC warned consumers to check their homes for any of the toys involved in the Fisher Price recall.  The recalled toys were purchased at retail outlets between May and August 2007, and cost between $5 and $40.    All of the toys were marked “Fisher-Price” and may have been marked with date codes between 109-7LF and 187-7LF.  The CPSC said that under no circumstances should children be allowed to play with the lead tainted toys.  Fisher Price offered to exchange the defective toys for vouchers good for a replacement toy of equal value.  Consumers who needed to return a product were instructed to call Fisher-Price at 1-800-916-4498.

Lawyers Helping Victims of the Fisher Price Recall
The attorneys at Parker Waichman Alonso LLP understand that the toys involved in the Fisher Price recall can cause devastating injuries to children.  Our lawyers have represented hundreds of victims of dangerous toys with dignity and compassion.  If a child you know has been exposed to a recalled Fisher Price toy, they might have important legal rights.   Please fill out the form at the right for a free case review by a qualified attorney.