The US Consumer Product Safety Commission has determined that Amazon is responsible for hazardous or defective products sold by third-party retailers through its platform. The CPSC unanimously decided that more than 400,000 products sold through the Fulfilled by Amazon program represent a “substantial product hazard,” and that the tech giant is legally responsible for their recall, citing a failure to properly notify buyers about the faulty products and encourage returns or destruction of those items. This decision comes after years of investigation, with the CPSC suing Amazon in July 2021 over issues like malfunctioning carbon monoxide detectors and non-compliant children’s sleepwear. The Department of Justice has also taken similar actions against eBay for selling environmentally hazardous products and settled a lawsuit for $59 million related to pill press machine sales in recent months.
