Recalled abroad but sold in Korea

It is never a good feeling to learn that the product you purchased has problems and the manufacturer is recalling it. But what if you purchased a product that had already been recalled in other countries?

According to the Korea Consumer Agency, that is precisely what has happened.

In the first three months of this year, the agency tracked down 26 items, sold in Korea, that were recalled overseas for various reasons, one being that they were a danger to children.

Child-related products and electronic consumer goods were the most commonly recalled items.

The agency found six products each, as well as four cosmetics and chemical products and three leisure-related products, including bicycles and off-road vehicles.

Ikea, the Sweden-based furniture and home accessories retailer, sold two products that were considered faulty.

One was a children’s drum set, LATTJO Tongue Drum. The product was recalled in the United States and Canada by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in January, after it was discovered that the rubber ball at the tip of the drumstick was detachable and posed a risk of suffocation.

Another Ikea product sold here but recalled overseas was a ceiling lamp, whose faulty attachment clips could end up shattering the glass in the event that they fail to hold up the lamp.

There was also the infant car seat from Britax, which was recalled in North America in January because its faulty handle easily cracks, allowing the seat to suddenly drop to the floor. The product was sold on 23 overseas online shopping sites.

Another product that was considered especially hazardous to children was Prestone’s windshield De-Icer and Ice & Frost Shield, which had a spray bottle with a cap that was not childproof.

The agency said that while it has asked importers and official suppliers like Ikea to refund these products or provide free repairs, the agency was unable to track down the sales records for 19 products here in Korea, and has asked overseas online shopping site operators to stop selling the products.

“As local consumers purchasing goods through overseas online shopping malls have been growing,” an agency official said, “we will work swiftly so that products that have been recalled overseas do not circulate in the local market.”

The agency said that consumers who have purchased goods overseas, or are planning to do so, can check to see if products have been recalled at the website www.smartconsumer.go.kr or www.ciss.go.kr.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]