CPSC approves new safety standard for play yards

Kids Today Staff -- Kids Today, 8/6/2012 11:22:20 AM

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has approved a new mandatory federal safety standard for play yards, which incorporates guidelines from ASTM International.

The requirements as outlined in ASTM Consumer Safety Standard Specification F406 include:

• A stability test to prevent tip over.

• Latch and lock mechanisms that keep the play yard from folding when a child is in it.

• Entrapment tests for attached accessories such as a bassinet.

• Tests to measure the structural integrity of the play yard floor.

• Minimum side height requirements to prevent children from climbing out.

• Tests to prevent play yards with rails that fold downward from using a hinge that forms a V or diamond shape, which can pose an entrapment hazard.

According to the CPSC, there were more than 2,100 incidents involving play yards reported between November 2007 and December 2011, including 60 deaths and 170 injuries.

The new standard will go into effect six months after the final rule is published in the Federal Register.