A US regulator has ruled that Amazon is legally responsible for recalling defective third-party products sold on its site. On Tuesday, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued the order after suing in 2021 to force Amazon to properly recall over 400,000 defective product units that Amazon.com sold to consumers from 2018 to 2021.The legal battle concerns products sold through the “Fulfilled by Amazon” program, which lets third-party vendors outsource deliveries to the e-commerce giant. Amazon told PCMag it already notified customers about the defective products, which included instructing consumers to stop using them and offering refunds. However, the CPSC alleges that Amazon failed to “provide sufficient notification to the public and did not take adequate steps to encourage its customers to return or destroy these hazardous items, thereby leaving consumers at risk of injury.”The CSPC filed the lawsuit against Amazon for selling 418,818 units of product that the agency later flagged as defective. Hazardous items included faulty carbon monoxide detectors, potentially flammable clothing, and hair dryers that lacked electrocution protection. Although Amazon did notify affected customers about the faulty products, CSPC took issue with how the company warned consumers by describing the defects as a “potential safety issue,” or that they “may fail to meet the federal standard for the flammability of children’s sleepwear.” The other issue is that Amazon’s messages gave no way for customers to return the product or to show proof that the faulty products were destroyed to prevent re-use. Rather than offer a full refund or replacement, the company only issued gift cards for Amazon credit.According to the CSPC, Amazon didn’t contend with the hazardous nature of the defective products. Still, the company tried to argue before an Administrative Law Judge that “it was not a distributor and bore no responsibility for the safety of the products sold under its Fulfilled by Amazon program.” In addition, Amazon claimed offering customers in-store credit to compensate for the defective products was enough, rather than offering an official refund. However, the judge rejected Amazon’s arguments. “Amazon must now develop and submit proposed plans to notify purchasers and the public about the product hazards, and to provide refunds or replacements for these products,” CSPC said. “Notice to the public is important so that people who may have received one of the products as a gift or purchased it second-hand can learn about the hazards. The Commission will consider these plans and then issue a second order on notification and remedies.”
Recommended by Our Editors
In response, Amazon told PCMag: “We are disappointed by the CPSC’s decision. We plan to appeal the decision and look forward to presenting our case in court.”The company adds that it already has measures in place to prevent unsafe products from reaching Amazon customers. This includes making it easy to return defective products. “In the event of a product recall in our store, we remove impacted products promptly after receiving actionable information from recalling agencies, and we continue to seek ways to innovate on behalf of our customers,” Amazon said. “Our recalls alerts service also ensures our customers are notified of important product safety information fast, and the recalls process is effective and efficient.”
Get Our Best Stories!
Sign up for What’s New Now to get our top stories delivered to your inbox every morning.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
