New Baby Crib Safety Rules Effectively Ban Used Models

(The New York Post) - Tough new federal rules on baby crib safety from Tuesday effectively ban the sale of used cribs at retail outlets, online sites, including eBay and Craigslist, and yard sales in the US.

The rules were part of a raft of new manufacturing guidelines, adopted in December 2010, which outlawed so-called "drop-side" cribs, whose moving parts have caused dozens of infant fatalities over the past decade, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) , and any other cribs that do not meet the stringent guidelines.

"It's going to be very challenging for a used crib to be found out there that is compliant with the new rules," CPSC spokesman Scott Wolfson told the New York Post. "We essentially have established the most stringent safety standards in the world."

The stricter standards raised the bar for a new generation of cribs on the market. Scrambling to get current with the first tightening of federal standards since the early 1970s, retailers and manufacturers were clearing out outdated cribs that did not pass muster.

Some smaller retailers have lobbied regulators for a grace period that would allow them more time to sell off their existing inventory.

As of late afternoon Monday on Craigslist's New York City site, a search on "baby cribs" turned up more than 300 ads, many of which appeared to be listings of used cribs. A similar search on eBay yielded more than 22,000 listings.

Sources said the new rules called for civil penalties up to $100,000 per violation.

Spokespeople for eBay and Craigslist did not respond to requests for comment.

Source: The New York Post