What is the CPSC?
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is an independent federal regulatory agency formed in 1972 and charged
with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death from thousands of types of consumer products under
the agency's jurisdiction.
The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical
hazard, or that can injure children. The CPSC’s work to ensure the safety of consumer products—such as toys,
cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals—contributed substantially to the decline in the rate
of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.
What is the "Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database" or "Database"?
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database (Database)
is a publicly searchable database where submitters can report to the CPSC a harm or risk of harm related to the use of a
consumer product or other product or substance within the jurisdiction of the CPSC.
Members of the public can search the Database for safety information about products that are in their home already, or that
they may be thinking about purchasing. Beginning March 11, 2011, reports of harm or “Reports,” that contain
minimum information required by law and that provide the submitter’s consent, will be posted in the Database on our
website at: www.SaferProducts.gov. The public can search the Database and review Reports approximately 15 business days
after a Report is submitted to the CPSC.
Product manufacturers (including importers) and private labelers that are identified in a Report may submit comments to
be displayed in the Database along with the Report. Information about product recalls is also available for search and review
in the Database. The Database represents a new level of transparency for the CPSC, allowing the public to have immediate
access to safety information about consumer products.
How did the Database come about?
In August 2008, Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). Section 212 of the CPSIA requires the
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to create, by March 2011, a searchable public database of reports of harm
(Reports) related to the use of consumer products and other products or substances within the jurisdiction of the CPSC.
Congress required that the Database be publicly available, searchable, and accessible through the CPSC’s website.
Where can I find more information on the Database?
On November 24, 2010, the Commission voted to approve a final rule on the Database. The final rule defines the Database
and the scope of its contents. This regulation creates a new section in the Code of Federal Regulations at 16 CFR 1102 (effective
January 10, 2011), which is currently available at 75 FR 76832
(Dec. 9, 2010). You may also review information on the Database on www.SaferProducts.gov.