The operator of the Spend a Penny stores has been prosecuted and ordered to pay a total of $4,540 for supplying baby toys that failed mandatory safety standards following an inspection by the state’s consumer watchdog.

The managing partner was convicted in the Holden Hill Magistrates Court on Thursday and fined $3,500 plus additional costs for selling items that were in breach of product safety standards under  the Australian Consumer Law.

Commissioner for Consumer Affairs Dini Soulio said during compliance checks product safety inspectors from Consumer and Business Services (CBS) identified a four-piece Cheng Li Paradise Growth baby toy rattle set at the Campbelltown store that, when drop tested, easily broke into pieces and became an ingestion/inhalation hazard to children under three-years old.

“As a result of the failed drop testing, CBS recommended the stores remove all Cheng Li Paradise Growth toys from sale, which they agreed to do,” Mr Soulio said.

“The store also accepted advice to undertake a voluntary recall of the offending products with in-store notification and to notify the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) of the product recall.”

On a subsequent visit to Campbelltown Spend a Penny, CBS inspectors found the same product to be back on the shelves.

The Cheng Li Paradise Growth four-piece baby toy rattle set was sent to an accredited testing facility and failed nine of the 11 product safety tests it underwent.

Mr Soulio said consumers are entitled to expect that goods they purchase are safe and that South Australian retailers will act fast to remove them from shelves when product defects are identified to avoid risk or injury.

“The product in question was aimed at infants and was liable to break into small pieces with potentially fatal consequences if a piece was ingested by an infant.

“The trader failed to properly account for and destroy all items that were unsold stock in their stores and guarantee the product was no longer available for sale.

“This case is a strong reminder to businesses to have effective compliance and quality assurance processes in place to ensure their products meet the applicable mandatory standard and do not place the safety of young children at risk.”

Consumers can keep up to date on recalled products at the Recalls Australia website or by downloading the ACCC Recalls Australia mobile phone app.

For more information on product safety please visit the CBS website.