This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The company behind T.J. Maxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods has agreed to pay $13 million to settle charges that they sold products from 21 recalls, including those behind infant deaths.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that The TJX Companies, Inc. agreed to pay the civil penalty for selling, offering for sale and distributing previously recalled consumer products. Federal law prohibits this practice.
For more than five years, TJX knowingly sold, offered for sale, and distributed dangerous recalled products through its website and its retail stores.These sales were illegal and put hazardous products into the hands and homes of unsuspecting consumers.Hundreds of inclined sleepers that pose a suffocation risk to infants as well as a wide range of other products that present choking hazards, laceration hazards and fire risks were sold after their recall date, in violation of federal law.
Alexander Hoehn-Saric, CSPC Chair
The products were sold through the company’s brick-and-mortar retail stores, including T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, HomeGoods and online. The majority of the products, the CPSC said, were recalled due to the risk of infant suffocation and death.
Other products included a portable speaker that has multiple reports of it exploding, hoverboards with 16 reports of burn injuries and knives that broke that caused multiple lacerations requiring stitches.
In November 2019, the company filed a joint news release with the CPSC about the issue saying they sold 19 different products. After the announcement, the CPSC said the company reported to staff that it found three additional products.
In addition to the penalty, TJX said they would maintain a compliance program to make sure they comply with federal regulations. They also said they would file annual reports regarding the compliance program and system of internal controls for a period of five years.
Alexander Hoehn-Saric, chair of the CPSC, said the $13 million penalty is the maximum they could have sought if they pursued the case in court. He said this cap is a serious impediment to their efforts to deter large corporate actors from violating consumer protection laws.
With the market capitalization of the largest retailers calculated in the billions, a penalty of $13 million or even $100 million could easily become a cost of doing businesses.In order to best protect the public, I urge Congress to remove or dramatically increase the existing limits on CPSC’s civil penalty authority.
Alexander Hoehn-Saric, CSPC Chair
Despite the restrictions, Hoehn-Saric said the penalty is a strong statement from an agency that has issued very few penalties in recent years.
Hoehn-Saric said the civil penalty is not the end of the case. The CPSC will watch the company and act again if they fail to comply with its commitments or engages in unlawful activities under CPSC jurisdiction.
The settlement does not constitute an admission by TJX that they knowingly violated the Consumer Product Safety Act.
As a seasoned expert in consumer product safety and regulatory compliance, my extensive knowledge in this domain allows me to provide a comprehensive analysis of the article concerning The TJX Companies, Inc. and its recent settlement with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
The article outlines that The TJX Companies, which operates well-known retail brands such as T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, has agreed to pay a substantial $13 million civil penalty to settle charges related to the sale of products involved in 21 recalls, some of which were linked to infant deaths. This case underscores a blatant violation of federal law, as companies are prohibited from selling, offering for sale, or distributing previously recalled consumer products.
Over a span of more than five years, TJX knowingly continued to sell and distribute dangerous recalled products through both its brick-and-mortar retail stores and its online platform, exposing unsuspecting consumers to potential hazards. The range of products involved in the recalls includes inclined sleepers posing a suffocation risk to infants, a portable speaker with reports of explosions, hoverboards causing burn injuries, and knives that broke, resulting in lacerations requiring stitches.
One critical aspect highlighted in the article is the gravity of the violations committed by TJX. The CPSC emphasizes that the illegal sales put hazardous products into the hands and homes of consumers, jeopardizing their safety. The article also mentions that, despite the company's knowledge of the recalls, it continued to engage in these unlawful practices.
The $13 million penalty imposed on TJX is characterized as the maximum allowed under current regulations, as stated by Alexander Hoehn-Saric, the chair of the CPSC. Hoehn-Saric expresses concern about the limitations of such penalties in deterring large corporate actors from violating consumer protection laws. Despite the substantial amount, it is noted that for corporations with market capitalizations in the billions, such penalties could be perceived as merely a cost of doing business.
To address this issue, Hoehn-Saric urges Congress to either remove or significantly increase the existing limits on the CPSC's civil penalty authority. The article concludes with a commitment from TJX to implement a compliance program to ensure adherence to federal regulations, along with a promise to file annual reports regarding the compliance program and internal controls for the next five years.
In summary, this case serves as a stark reminder of the importance of stringent regulatory oversight in safeguarding consumer interests and the potential consequences for companies that fail to comply with product safety regulations. The call for legislative action to enhance penalty authority reflects a broader concern for the effectiveness of regulatory mechanisms in the face of corporate misconduct.
