Tesla, the US electric-car giant, has been fined by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for failing to comply with the mandatory safety standards for products powered by button batteries. The ACCC issued Tesla Motors Australia with 10 infringement notices, with fines paid totalling $155,460.
Button batteries are small, coin-shaped batteries that can cause serious harm or even death if swallowed by children. They can cause chemical burns and potentially injure vital organs. According to the ACCC, there have been three reported deaths of children in Australia from inserting or ingesting button batteries.
The ACCC found that Tesla sold 952 products that did not comply with the button battery safety standards between June 2022 and May 2023. These products included some of its key fobs and door sills, which did not have secure battery compartments and explicit warning labels to prevent children from accessing and swallowing the batteries.
“Any failure to test these products before they are sold poses an unacceptable risk to children. We expect all companies, large and small, to comply with the mandatory button battery standards to ensure children are protected from the dangers of button batteries,” said Catriona Lowe, ACCC deputy chair.
“Button batteries can be lethal for young children, and the Australian mandatory standards are designed to reduce the risk of injury through testing of the safety of products containing them before they are sold, and explicit warnings on the packaging of the products,” Lowe added.
Tesla removed the products from sale when the ACCC began investigating and has since found some of them to comply with the standards. The company also cooperated with the ACCC and agreed to implement a compliance program to prevent future breaches.
Relevant articles:
-Tesla fined $155,460 by Australian consumer watchdog over button battery safety breaches, published by The Guardian on October 13, 2023.
-Tesla fined by Australian watchdog for breach of battery safety standards, published by Reuters on October 12, 2023.
-Tesla fined more than $155,000 for failing to meet Australia’s ‘button battery’ standards, published by Drive on October 13, 2023.