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Nottingham City Council
The dolls mimic popular brands, but do not carry quality marks and there is poor English on the packaging
Children’s reproductive systems could be damaged by chemicals used in cheap dolls sold in the run-up to Christmas, trading standards officials said.
The Sweet Fashion Doll and Girl Beautiful Doll – costing between £1 and £3 – have been supplied nationwide by a Nottingham wholesaler.
Nottingham City Council could not name the wholesaler or the shops it supplied because it is still investigating.
The dolls contain high levels of phthalates, said trading standards.
The potentially harmful chemicals are used to toughen plastic in the Chinese-made dolls, said the council team.
Image copyright
Nottingham City Council
The Chartered Trading Standards Institute warned that very young children and babies could chew the toys and “consume the chemicals”
Jane Bailey, the team’s manager, added: “The last thing anyone wants is Christmas ruined by their child becoming ill because of a toy they have been given.
“We understand the financial pressures people are under at the moment, but I’d urge parents to resist the temptation to buy cheap toys like these.
“They will carry none of the required quality marks and will likely have been subjected to no product testing at all.”
The council could not tell the BBC how many had been sold, or where in the UK they were on sale.
‘Remain vigilant’
Although such investigations are led by local authorities, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, a national body, said there was a rise of “substandard toys” being brought to the UK around Christmas and there had been “several seizures”.
It warned customers to “remain vigilant”.
Robert Chantry-Price, a lead officer for product safety, said: “It is frightening to think that large quantities of phthalates are still being used in children’s toys.
“Phthalates are carcinogenic, mutagenic and can cause reproductive problems but, despite legislation to the contrary, significant amounts of these substances can be found in a wide range of toys and child-care products.
“If these toys fall into the hands of very young children or babies, it’s more likely they will chew on the plastic and consume the chemicals.”
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