A number of toy manufacturers outside the European Union have found online marketplaces to be a loophole that allows them to place in the European market products that do not meet safety rules. The European toy industry has denounced this gap, attributing it to a legal loophole that permits the sale of such items. Authorities in the European Union are urged to correct this flaw because these toys pose real health risks to children and carry serious economic consequences for companies. Estimates suggest that counterfeit and unsafe toys, often linked to misleading or poor quality products, cause annual losses in the Alicante region near forty million euros for local businesses.
The European toy federation, Toy Industries of Europe, disclosed at the end of 2023 that it had purchased 19 toys on a well known marketplace and found that none complied with EU safety rules and that 18 of them presented real safety hazards for children. Independent EU accredited laboratories tested the items, and the results were alarming. They identified risks of cuts, choking, suffocation, and chemical dangers. A toy rattle was cited as an example, with sharp edges, small parts, and rigid protrusions. In addition, all items except one lacked a contact address within the EU, a requirement under the EU market surveillance regulations.
These findings align with results from 2020, when purchases across four different online markets showed that roughly 95 percent failed to meet safety standards. The problem is said to lie with third party sellers who use these platforms for advertising and selling products within the community market. The responsible parties cannot be easily held liable for toy safety due to a legal gap that does not cover this scenario.
When the marketplace was informed of the findings, it stated that measures had been taken and that the toys could no longer be found on the platform. The toy federation called this step encouraging but not sufficient. Catherine Van Reeth, the federation’s chief executive, asserts that the EU must craft and enforce stronger rules against the sale of counterfeit and unsafe toys. She notes that the EU has some of the strictest toy safety regulations in the world, yet online platforms still allow access to non EU sellers who endanger children. She argues that platforms and online marketplaces should take responsibility for removing and barring access to traders who sell illegal and unsafe toys.
Officials from the Spanish Toy Manufacturers Association echo these concerns. They emphasize that a forthcoming regulation is being drafted to address the current legal gap and to strengthen market surveillance. They criticize a proposal under discussion that they believe would impose higher requirements on the industry without improving safety, potentially increasing costs for responsible companies while letting unfair competition flood the market with cheaper unsafe toys through online third party sellers.
In terms of the economic impact, the bill of losses remains heavy. A recent study by the European Union Intellectual Property Office, based in Alicante, indicates that European companies lose more than a billion euros annually, with about 113 million of that impact borne by the Spanish industry alone. Given the sectoral weight of the Alicante firms, estimated losses for local companies could reach around 40 million euros.
Bordes cortantes or small parts that pose choking or choking hazards rank among the most frequent safety breaches in illegally sold toys. Gema Pozo, an engineer specializing in toy safety at AIJU in Ibi, explains that material composition and plastic components sometimes reveal high lead content. The common breach, she adds, is improper labeling. Missing CE marks, incomplete information, or instructions not provided in EU languages indicate that these toys likely never underwent proper safety tests.
These concerns reflect a broader push from industry bodies and safety advocates for clearer rules and robust enforcement to protect children while preventing unfair competition from unlawful sellers on popular online marketplaces.