Department for Business Energy Industrial Strategy
Central Government
Action Planned
The Department has passed concerns about a nursing pillow lacking proper safety warnings to the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) for investigation and potential action with Local Authority Trading Standards. (AI summary)
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Kelly Tolhurst MP Department for Business, Energy & Department for inidictoria Sireetegy London Business; Energy SW1H OET & Industrial Strategy +44 (0) 20 7215 5000 engulres@beis govuK W #MWgQKuk Alison Mutch OBE HM Senior Coroner Our ref: #eee Coroners Court Mount Tabor Street (C December 2018 Stockport SK1 3AG RECEIVED ` 2 4 DEC 2018 Qocl/ Ms Muleh Ch Thank you for your letter and Regulation 28 Report to Prevent Future Deaths, dated 22 November 2018, following your investigation and inquest into the death of baby Savannah- Rose Michelle Owen on 22 April 2018, who died after falling asleep on a nursing pillow on the sofa and becoming unresponsive: am responding as the Minister responsible for product safety policy in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS): would first like to say how sory was to hear about this terrible incident If you have the opportunity, please convey my deepest sympathies to Savannah-Rose's family. The death of baby Savannah-Rose was unexplained and ruled on the balance of probabilities to be death by natural causes: However, we must do everything we can to ensure that our product safety system continues to function effectively for the safety of products used by babies and new parents, s0 as Minister for product safety policy | am addressing the points you have raised regarding the nursing pillow on which Savannah-Grace fell asleep. You raise the concern that there are no specific safety regulations for nursing pillows. The safety of nursing pillows, along with many other products, is regulated by the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPSR): Under the GPSR, products are required to be safe in normal or reasonably foreseeable use when placed on the market: Before the product is placed on the market; manufacturers must ensure products are safe_ Distributors and retailers must act with due care and must not supply product which know or ought to know is unsafe: In this case, you have raised concerns that the product was sold with safety use warnings on a leaflet that was not attached to the product Furthermore, three out of five images on the warning leaflet showed baby using the product without an adult figure, which is not consistent with safe sleeping advice given to new parents. In determining whether a product is safe under GPSR , one of the factors is the presentation of the product, including any labelling, warnings and instructions for use. ` ` they
Both the Office for Product Safety (OPSS) and Local authority Trading Standards have powers to act where unsafe products are identified including, requiring changes to safety information and instructions for use and, where appropriate, issuing a recall of the product: have passed your concerns regarding the nursing pillow on to OPSS's Product Safety Enforcement Team but in order to investigate further have asked that any details yOU have of the specific product involved, including information about the distributor be shared with them: If you have any further infomation that would assist their assessment, would be grateful if you could it directly to Graham Russell; Chief Executive, OPSS , Victoria Square House, Birmingham B2 4AJ: This would allow OPSS to work with Local Authority Trading Standards to determine whether further action is needed, based on all the evidence available: Thank you for bringing this issue to my attention: hope have reassured you that the Government takes product safety issues seriously and is working with its partners to continually improve the level of safety for children and babies Yors Sncoily KELLY TOLHURST MP Minister for Small Business, Consumers & Corpfrate Responsibility they pass
Both the Office for Product Safety (OPSS) and Local authority Trading Standards have powers to act where unsafe products are identified including, requiring changes to safety information and instructions for use and, where appropriate, issuing a recall of the product: have passed your concerns regarding the nursing pillow on to OPSS's Product Safety Enforcement Team but in order to investigate further have asked that any details yOU have of the specific product involved, including information about the distributor be shared with them: If you have any further infomation that would assist their assessment, would be grateful if you could it directly to Graham Russell; Chief Executive, OPSS , Victoria Square House, Birmingham B2 4AJ: This would allow OPSS to work with Local Authority Trading Standards to determine whether further action is needed, based on all the evidence available: Thank you for bringing this issue to my attention: hope have reassured you that the Government takes product safety issues seriously and is working with its partners to continually improve the level of safety for children and babies Yors Sncoily KELLY TOLHURST MP Minister for Small Business, Consumers & Corpfrate Responsibility they pass