CPSC, Chicco USA Inc. Announce Recall of Preschool Toys

Recalled July 2, 2001 · CPSC recall 01182 · Chicco

Hazard

Some of the larger-sized ball halves can become stuck on a young child's face, covering the nose and mouth, and causing suffocation.

Remedy

Parents and caregivers should take these balls away from young children immediately and return the toys to the store where purchased for a refund.

Units

About 6,000

Incidents / injuries

CPSC received a report of a 2-year-old boy who had a ball-half stuck on his face, covering his nose and mouth. A nearby adult was able to pull the toy from his face. No injury to the child was reported.

Description

The Build-A-Ball toy consists of five multi-colored and various-sized plastic balls that can be taken apart to be stacked on top of each other or placed inside each other. The five balls in the toy set range in size from about 2 inches to 4 inches in diameter. One-half of the balls are white, green, blue, red or yellow, and the other half is clear. "chicco" is written inside the balls. The balls are packaged in a box labeled "chicco," "Build-a-Ball," "Cod. 66167," and "Made in China." The packaging also indicated the toy is for children ages 1-3 years or 1-4 years. The text on the packaging is written in 11 languages.

What to do

Parents and caregivers should take these balls away from young children immediately and return the toys to the store where purchased for a refund.

Contact

For more information, consumers should call Chicco USA Inc., toll-free at (877) 424-4226 between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or visit the company's website www.chiccousa.com

Product

Build-A-Ball toy

Imported by

Chicco USA Inc., of Bound Brook, N.J.

Retailers

Amazon.com, Army & Air Force Exchanges and other toy stores nationwide sold these toys, from January 1999 through April 2001, for about $6.

Made in

China

Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Official recall notice on cpsc.gov →