Internet, phone sales complicate product recalls for Mainers

It used to be easier to determine whether Maine consumers were at risk from unsafe products being recalled because we could eliminate merchandise sold in stores with no outlets in Maine. With telephone and online shopping becoming a national obsession, it isn’t so easy anymore. Maine consumers can purchase merchandise, including unsafe products, from literally anywhere in the world. So, in addition to determining whether a company is reliable and legitimate before buying a product, Maine consumers also should watch recall alerts more closely afterward.

Two products that were marketed online and in TV ads are now the subject of safety recalls, in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The Discovery Channel Store Inc. of Berkeley, Calif., is voluntarily recalling 16,000 glass and metal oil-burning lamps. The glass on these lamps can shatter when lit, posing a fire and laceration hazard to consumers. The company has received four reports of the lamps shattering, including two reports of minor property damage. There have been no reports of injuries.

The recalled lamps come in two shapes: 16-by-7-inch rectangular, and 7.5-inch square. The top piece of the clear rectangular lamp has an opening for five wicks, and the top piece of the clear square lamp has an opening for one wick. The lamps have two stacking glass pieces supported by a black metal frame. The lower glass piece has a reservoir for oil.

Discovery Channel Stores and The Nature Co. stores nationwide sold the lamps from September 1999 through July 2001 for between $18 and $24.

Consumers should stop using these lamps immediately and return them to any Discovery Channel Store or The Nature Co. store nationwide for a refund. Consumers also can call The Discovery Channel Store toll-free at (800) 752-1937 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. PT Monday through Friday, or visit the company’s Web site at www.shopping.discovery.com

Meanwhile, Maya Wrap of Omaha, Neb., is voluntarily recalling about 5,000 infant carrier-slings.

The welds of the metal rings that support the carrier-slings can break, possibly causing young children to be hurt in a fall. Maya Wrap has received 20 reports of the rings breaking. The company received a report that one child fell to the ground but no injuries were reported.

The recalled carrier-slings are made of 100 percent cotton fabric with two metal support rings. The rings measure ?-inch wide. They were sold in a variety of colors, prints, and sizes. A large white label sewn in the slings reads in part, “MAYA WRAP” and “ECHO EN GUATEMALA”.

Web sites and individual distributors nationwide sold these carrier-slings from January 2001 to July 2001 for between $30 and $40. Also, eight children’s boutiques in various states sold these carrier-slings.

Consumers should stop using these carrier-slings immediately and call Maya Wrap at (800) 501-9979 for instructions on how to have them repaired. Carrier-slings with 1/4-inch wide rings are not included in this recall.

If you wish to be included on the COMBAT-Maine Center for the Public Interest list to be notified online of recalls, scams, and other consumer information, e-mail NeCOMBAT@aol.com Requests for information or assistance cannot be processed at that address, which is for mailing list requests only.

To learn how you can become a donor, volunteer, or subscriber to the Maine Center for the Public Interest’s soon-to-be-launched Web site – consumerprotect.org – send a self-addressed, postage-paid (#10 business sized) envelope to: MCPI, 109 State St., Bangor, Maine 04401. Include the words “Web site Information” in your request and indicate whether your interest is in being a donor, volunteer and-or subscriber.

Consumer Forum is a collaboration of the Bangor Daily News and Northeast COMBAT-The Maine Center for the Public Interest, Maine’s membership-funded nonprofit consumer organization. For help or to request individual or business membership information write: Consumer Forum, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329.