ACCC issues first Australian button battery fines to Dusk and The Reject Shop

The Reject Shop and Dusk have been fined a total of almost $240,000 over Halloween products that contain button batteries.

According to the ACCC, these products didn’t comply with Australia’s mandatory product safety and information standards, which were introduced in December 2021.

Dusk admitted that four of its Halloween products, sold between August and October 2022, didn’t comply with these standards.

Upon inspection, the ACCC said these products didn’t have a secure compartment for the button batteries, adequate safety warnings and weren’t tested to industry standard.

The candle retailer entered into a court-enforceable undertaking in late April and agreed to pay $106,560 in penalties from eight infringement notices.

The Reject Shop is paying a penalty of $133,200 from one infringement notice from 2022. The ACCC alleged that two of its novelty Halloween products were not tested to the mandatory safety standards before being sold.

Upon testing the products, The Reject Shop found them to be compliant. However, the ACCC still fined the retailer for not doing these tests ahead of sale.

“Failing to test products before selling them is unacceptable and poses a serious risk of injury or death for young children,” ACCC Deputy Chair, Catriona Lowe, said in a statement.

The ACCC has had its eye on button batteries for a number of years. It launched a safety campaign regarding the danger they posed in 2021.

Button batteries are a serious safety concern in Australia

The Australian government was the first in the world to introduce mandatory safety information standards for button battery-operated products.

These products are required to include safety compartments for the batteries, child-protective packaging and safety testing. Warning labels and symbols also need to be included with the products.

After an 18-month transition period for companies, the standards became mandatory in July 2022.

The Reject Shop and Dusk are the first retailers to come under the consumer watchdog’s fiscal hammer since the new standards were introduced.

However, during the transition period, Apple Airtags came under fire after being removed from shelves by Officeworks over safety concerns.

Other retailers quickly followed, including JB Hi-Fi and Big W. While the ACCC was initially not saying much about their mass removal, it eventually issued an official warning almost two months after this author’s exclusive reports.

Apple updated its product packaging and warnings to be compliant with the new standards by the time they were made official.

“Button batteries are extremely dangerous for young children and tragically, children have been seriously injured or died from swallowing or ingesting them,” Lowe said.

“The batteries were contained in products likely to be attractive to young children who are most at risk of harm from unsecured batteries.

“It is essential that businesses comply with Australia’s world-first button battery standards to prevent further injuries and deaths from button batteries.”

Disclosure: The author is a former employee of Dusk.