CHOICE has revealed 5 out of 14 cots in their latest testing were found to have serious safety failures.
Most of the cots that failed to meet basic safety standards were purchased from popular online platforms such as eBay and Baby Bunting Marketplace – with a gap in Australian product safety laws allowing marketplace operators to sell products that pose safety risks like these.
Australia is moving towards a new mandatory standard aimed at improving cot safety, coming into effect in January 2026. In the meantime, CHOICE experts test each cot against key safety clauses from existing voluntary and mandatory safety standards.
"In our latest testing, we unfortunately found many cots from online retailers weren't adhering to basic safety standards. Some cots had limb entrapment or strangulation hazards, others had no safety warnings, or were missing information on recommended mattress sizes – leaving babies and toddlers at risk," says CHOICE household expert, Chris Barnes.
"The cots which failed safety testing were very cheap, ranging from $139 to $370, and came from brands Sweet Pea, Consol, Grotime, Luxo Baby, and Koko and Scar," says Barnes.
The baby cots that failed our latest safety tests:
- Consol Roma cot - $229
- Grotime Haven cot - $139
- Koko and Scar cot - $279
- Luxo Baby Eudora cot - $249
- Sweet Pea Anita cot - $370
"At the moment, a gap in the law means that online marketplaces aren't required to ensure the products being sold on their platforms by third parties are safe. That's why we need stronger product safety laws that make it illegal for all companies to sell unsafe products – no matter what the product is or who it's sold by," says Barnes.
Read the cot buying guide for further advice: https://www.choice.com.au/babies-and-kids/baby-furniture/cots/buying-guides/cots
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