Distributor HALO announced a recall of promotional children’s projector flashlights due to button battery ingestion and choking hazards. The company, working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), issued the recall after discovering that children can disassemble the flashlights and access their batteries.
Terry McGuire, HALO senior vice president, shared with PPB Newslink how the company’s response to the issue followed its established procedures and policies for handling recalls. “HALO developed a formal Product Recall Plan several years ago that was reviewed and approved by the CPSC Ombudsman. We have shared this plan with our clients and have also shared it on request with several of our industry distributor peers. When our client made us aware of the issue, we initiated the appropriate steps in our plan, including immediately notifying the CPSC of the issue, the client and the product distribution. We worked closely with the CPSC and our client to provide the details noted in the voluntary recall and to publish the information as quickly as possible.”
The flashlights were part of a care package distributed to hospitals and health-care facilities between February and June as a promotional item. The Disney-branded packages also included a tote bag, silicone wristband, playing cards, ink pen, journal, wall decals and a set of postcards. About 82,500 of the flashlights are in the marketplace. HALO has received two reports of children accessing the button cell batteries from the flashlight, and in one case, a child required surgery to remove a swallowed battery.
The recall involves five models of children’s flashlights—Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Avengers and ESPN. They have a key chain on one end and a flashlight projector on the other end. The model name is imprinted on the middle of the flashlight. The flashlights are red, dark blue or light blue, and measure three-inches long by a half-inch in diameter. There are four button cell batteries with model number LR41 inside the flashlight.
McGuire adds, “Integrity is a core HALO value. We were fortunate to have a proven and tested process in place to address potential issues related to the products we provide to our clients and the ultimate consumers that receive the products.”
Click here for the CPSC’s page on the recall.
