The Consumer Product Safety Commission has just reached a milestone. Their website Saferproducts.gov has now been in service for precisely one year.
The database found on that site lets concerned persons search for any relevant recall information as well as post their own complaints directly to the site. 6,000 reports were submitted to the site within the first ten months of its existence. A study has shown that most reports, 37%, concerned kitchen products, while children’s products were the next biggest area of concern at 15% of reports.
The site was started as the result of a survey which suggested that a whopping 82% of citizens would be interested in a webpage that tracks dangerous products. Consumers make up the lion’s share of those persons filing a report to the site, with contributions from medical professionals and public safety entities conspicuously absent for the most part.
Concerned consumers may visit the site to browse recall information, or else they can file reports and use a keyword search to see various other safety reports that may or may not have resulted in a recall.
As a personal injury lawyer in San Bernardino, I can see how a tool like this would be indispensable for millions of Americans. It’s never guaranteed that a product you own is completely safe, but being able to see if anyone else has had problems is a comforting thought. It’s my hope as a Los Angeles personal injury attorney that more people utilize this excellent site.