How to Report an Unsafe Consumer Product to the CPSC

The CPSC oversees more than 15,000 types of consumer products. Report a CPSC issue if it involves:

• Children's products: cribs, strollers, car seats (defects only — recalls for car-seat performance go to NHTSA), toys, baby gates, high chairs
• Furniture: dressers and bookcases (tip-over hazards), beds, chairs that collapse
• Appliances: refrigerators, dishwashers, ovens, microwaves, washers and dryers
• Electronics and batteries: phones, laptops, power banks, e-bike and e-scooter batteries
• Sports and outdoor gear: bicycles, hoverboards, helmets, fitness equipment, fire pits, grills
• Home items: space heaters, fans, lighting, candles, kitchenware (non-food)
• Clothing and apparel: flammable sleepwear, drawstring issues on kids' clothes

Not for CPSC: food, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, tobacco (those go to the FDA); meat, poultry, eggs (USDA); cars, tires, car seats for crash performance (NHTSA); firearms and explosives (ATF); workplace tools used by employees only (OSHA).

The more detail you include, the faster the CPSC can investigate. Try to have:

• Product name and brand or manufacturer
• Model number, serial number, or date code (usually on a sticker or stamped on the product)
• Where and when you bought it (store, online retailer, approximate date)
• What happened: a clear description of the defect or incident
• Photos of the product, the defect, and any injuries (you can upload them)
• Medical reports or receipts if anyone was hurt or treated
• The product itself — keep it in a safe location, the CPSC may ask for it

The official reporting portal is SaferProducts.gov/IncidentReporting. The form takes most people 10–20 minutes.

1. Go to SaferProducts.gov and click "Report Unsafe Product".
2. Choose whether you want your report to be shared publicly on the SaferProducts.gov database. Public reports help other consumers research products before buying.
3. Enter the product category, brand, model number, and incident details.
4. Upload photos and any supporting documents.
5. Provide your contact information (kept confidential — the manufacturer is not given your identity unless you opt in).
6. Submit. The CPSC sends a confirmation and a copy of the report to the manufacturer within 5 business days.

Prefer to call or write? You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772 (M-F 8am-5:30pm ET) or mail a report to the CPSC at 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814.

• The CPSC adds your report to its incident-tracking database and pattern-matches with similar complaints.
• If the agency identifies a defect pattern, it can open a formal investigation, request more data from the manufacturer, or negotiate a recall.
• Public reports become searchable at SaferProducts.gov, helping other consumers research products before buying.
• The manufacturer can submit a comment that gets published alongside your report.
• Most reports do not result in a direct response to you — they feed the CPSC's surveillance system.

• Be specific. "Battery overheated and melted the case after 20 minutes of charging on the included charger" beats "battery had a problem."
• Document with photos. A clear photo of the defect and the model-number sticker is worth pages of description.
• Include injuries with detail. Date of incident, what part of the body, severity, treatment received.
• Save the product. If the CPSC investigates, they may want the physical product as evidence.
• Make your report public if you want other consumers to find it when researching the product.