PARENTS have been urged to check if their kids have a lightsaber toy that's been pulled off sale by Amazon after paint used on it was found to contain poisonous lead.
The silver "Beamz Light Up Toy Sword" was being sold on the shopping website until this morning when it was removed after the danger was flagged by Trading Standards.
According to the safety body, the silver paint on the product is laced with lead, which could prove harmful if a child puts it in their mouth.
Exposure to lead can be especially harmful to young children as kids absorb more lead than adults due to their growing bones and other organs, where lead can be deposited.
Signs of lead poisoning can include irritability and fatigue, loss of appetite and weight loss, abdominal pain and vomiting.
Trading Standards says the toy does not meet EU toy safety rules and a recall has been ordered.
Your product recall rights
PRODUCT recalls are an important means of protecting consumers from dangerous goods.
As a general rule, if a recall involves a branded product, the manufacturer would usually have lead responsibility for the recall action.
But it's often left up to supermarkets to notify customers when products could put them at risk.
If you are concerned about the safety of a product you own, always check the manufacturer’s website to see if a safety notice has been issued.
When it comes to appliances, rather than just food items, the onus is usually on you – the customer – to register the appliance with the manufacturer as if you don't there is no way of contacting you to tell you about a fault.
If you become aware that an item you own has been recalled or has any safety noticed issued against it, make sure you follow the instructions given to you by the manufacturer.
They should usually provide you with more information and a contact number on its safety notice.
In some cases, the manufacturer might ask you to return the item for a full redund or arrange for the faulty product to be collected.
You should not be charged for any recall work – such as a repair, replacement or collection of the recalled item.
Amazon has also voluntarily agreed to stop stocking the toy.
The online retailer says it will contact customers who have purchased the toy by email to warn them of the danger and to offer a full refund.
If you don't hear from Amazon then you should also contact it ask for a refund.
The light up toy sword, which is approximately 80cm long with a silver coloured handle and a white blade with coloured flashing lights, is distributed in the UK by a company called GMG and is made in China.
Amazon is still selling a similar Beamz laser toy in blue, which is not thought to pose the same risk as the silver version because it uses different paint.
Other Beamz toys stocked on the website include an emoji flying helicopter drone and a light-up butterfly wand.
Amazon was forced to recall a £69.99 pushchair earlier this year over fears it could tip over and hurt a child.
And Disney-themed glasses sold by the online retailer, as well as Tesco and The Range, were pulled from shelves after an investigation found that they contained potentially toxic metal.
Parents were also urged to check if their kids had a Crazy Geezer's Putty World purple slime toy, which was withdrawn from sale over choking fears.
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