Children's Toy Testing

Children’s Toy Testing

The CPSC has strict regulations and guidelines when it comes to the testing and certification of children’s toys.

A children’s toy is defined as any toy designed or intended for children under 12 years of age. If your company is importing, manufacturing, and/or distributing children’s toys, it is imperative that you partner with a qualified 3^rd-party testing lab like ACT LAB.

Depending on the type of toys you are selling, your product may be subject to specific types of tests to test for flammability, chemicals, and more. Our team can help you establish what tests you need to perform to ensure the safety of your product(s).

At ACT LAB we take the safety of consumers and companies seriously. When you partner with us, you can ensure that your products will undergo the most rigorous testing to meet all local and global regulations, no matter the marketplace you plan to sell in.

Testing Services

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), Section 101 – Children’s Products Containing Lead
ASTM Standard F 2617 – Identification and Quantification of Chromium, Bromine, Cadmium, Mercury, and Lead in Polymeric materials Using Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry
ASTM F963 – Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Toy Safety; all sections except 4.3.6.3: Cleanliness of Liquids, Pastes, Putties, Gels, and Powders, and 4.20.1: Pacifiers with Rubber Nipples/Nitrosamine Test; Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) of 2008, Section 101: Children’s Products Containing Lead; Lead Paint Rule
CPSC 16 CFR 1303 – CPSC-CH-E1003-09.1 – Determining Lead (Pb) in Paint and Other Similar Surface Coatings
CPSC-CH-C1001-09.3 – Standard Operating Procedure for Determination of Phthalates

CPSC-CH-E1002-8.3 – Standard Operating Procedure for Determining Total Lead (Pb) in Non-Metal Children’s Products (XRF portion only)
CPSC-CH-E1003 – Determining Lead (Pb) in Paint and Other Similar Surface Coatings
CPSC-CH-E1004-11 – Determining Cadmium Extractability from Children’s Metal Jewelry
ASTM F2617 – Standard Test Method for Identification and Quantification of Chromium, Bromine, Cadmium, Mercury, and Lead in Polymeric Material Using Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry
ASTM F963 – Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Toy Safety (4.2, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 4.10, 4.11, 4.12, 4.13, 4.14, 4.15, 4.16, 4.17, 4.18, 4.19, 4.20 (except 4.20.1), 4.21, 4.22, 4.23, 4.24, 4.25, 4.26, 4.27, 4.28, 4.29, 4.30, 4.31, 4.32, 4.33, 4.34, 4.35, 4.36, 4.37, 4.38, 4.39, 5, 6, 7 and 9)

EN 71-1 – Safety of toys — Part 1: Mechanical and physical properties
N 71-3– Safety of toys — Part 3: Migration of certain elements (excluding Chromium (III, IV) and Organic Tin)
CPSC 16 CFR 1500.48 – Determining a Sharp Point in Toys and Other Articles Intended for Use by children under 8 years of age
CPSC 16 CFR 1500.49 – Determining a Sharp Metal or Glass Edge in Toys and Other Articles Intended for use by children under 8 years of age
CPSC 16 CFR 1500.50 – Test methods for simulating Use and Abuse of toys and other articles intended for use by children

CPSC 16 CFR 1500.51 – Test methods for simulating use and abuse of toys and other articles Intended for use by children 18 months of age or less
CPSC 16 CFR 1500.52 – Test methods for simulating use and abuse of toys and other articles intended for use by children over 18 but not over 36 months of age
CPSC 16 CFR 1500.53 – Test methods for simulating use and abuse of toys and other articles intended for use by children over 36 but not over 96 months of age
CPSC 16 CFR 1501 – Method for for identifying toys and articles intended for use by children under 3 years of age which present a choking, aspiration, or ingestion hazard because of small parts
GB 6675.4– Safety of toys part 4: Migration of certain elements
GB 6675.2 – Safety of toys part 2: Mechanical and physical properties

The Toy Safety Standard

As specified by CPSC, “ASTM F963, The Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Toy Safety, is a comprehensive standard addressing numerous hazards that have been identified with toys. In 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) mandated that the voluntary toy safety standard in effect at that time become a nationwide mandatory children’s product safety rule.” All toys manufactured or imported after February 28, 2018 are required to meet the regulations of this standard.

Many toys are covered under the toy safety standard, while some are not or are covered by their own standard, such as bicycles. For a full list of what toys are covered and those which are not please see the ASTM International Website or consult with our team.

Regulations outside of the US

Depending on where you intend to distribute your toy products, you may be subject to different testing and regulation requirements. For example, the EU toy directive outlines criteria for toys made and distributed in the EU.

It is the responsibility of manufacturers to be familiar with laws and regulations depending on their marketplace. Failing to do so can result in legal repercussions, customer injury, recalls, and more.

About ACT-LAB

ACT-LAB is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory that conducts consumer product safety and compliance testing for an active world. We can help ensure that your products both meet industry standards and are inspected to ensure the utmost quality.

To learn more about our tests contact us today.

Read more about our accreditations here.