UK consumer group Which? identified 150 potentially lethal baby products on major online marketplaces, including self-feeding devices and sleep pillows. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing The Guardian.
The investigation found dangerous items on Alibaba, AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, OnBuy and TikTok Shop. Nearly a quarter of the products were on Amazon, which Which? said presents itself as an industry leader in detecting unsafe goods.
Sue Davies, head of consumer protection policy at Which?, said: "The lives of babies are at risk because these platforms won't stop dangerous products from reaching their customers … We've shown how easy it is to find these unsafe products, so it's impossible to take companies as powerful as Amazon or eBay at their word when they claim safety is a top priority."
Which? is urging ministers to use new powers under the Product Regulation and Metrology Act to make online marketplaces legally responsible for third-party products, with tough penalties for those that fail.
The research focused on products that had been subject to safety alerts or product safety notices from the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS).
The consumer group found 54 self-feeding devices across Alibaba, Amazon, eBay, OnBuy and TikTok Shop, despite an OPSS alert issued in 2022 warning that they create a risk of serious injury or death. These devices allow babies to bottle-feed without constant supervision, increasing the risk of choking or aspiration pneumonia.
Of the 150 products, 21 were pillow bottle-holders designed to fasten around a baby's neck.
Which? also identified 37 sleep pillows marketed for infants under 12 months across AliExpress, Amazon, Etsy, OnBuy and TikTok Shop. Many used terms such as "newborn" or "infant" or showed babies using the products in cots.
The OPSS issued a warning in December 2025 that sleep pillows marketed for babies under one year old posed risks of suffocation and overheating, which can lead to serious injury or death and have been associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Which? found 59 baby sleeping bags across Alibaba, AliExpress, Amazon, eBay and Etsy that it believes pose a serious suffocation risk because they include hoods, lack arm holes, or both. Which? said the products did not meet British Standards Institution safety requirements and should not be sold.
Thirty-eight of those sleeping bags were listed on Etsy, including one knitted hooded sleeping bag without arm holes that was pictured covering a baby's mouth and nose. Many were marketed as "bunny-style" sleeping bags.
Alibaba.com said it "swiftly removed the non-compliant products on our platform" and would continue to "educate sellers". AliExpress removed the flagged products and would make "necessary enhancements to our existing control measures to further reduce the risk of non-compliant product listings" reappearing.
An Etsy spokesperson said safety was "paramount" and that it "removed all the flagged policy-violating listings".
One swaddle blanket dispatched by Amazon was marketed for babies aged up to six months and featured a hood with teddy ears but no arm holes. The listing said it could be used as a sleeping sack. Which? reported the same product, in a different colour, to Amazon this year.
An Amazon spokesperson said: "Parents trust Amazon because we take customers' safety incredibly seriously, particularly when it comes to babies and infants. It's why we prohibit certain products … We've removed the products highlighted by Which? while we investigate."
The Product Regulation and Metrology Act, which came into force last July, gives ministers powers to impose product safety requirements on online marketplaces through secondary legislation. Which? said the measures had yet to be introduced and urged the government to act quickly to prevent dangerous products reaching UK consumers.
A spokesperson for OnBuy said safety was a top priority and that it had removed all products before any sales.
Ebay said it used technology, AI and expert teams "to help keep unsafe items off the site". It added: "Two of the items identified by Which? had already been removed before they contacted us. We have now removed the remaining four items and carried out a wider check." TikTok Shop said it had also removed flagged products, with notices issued to customers. "TikTok has policies and processes in place to protect customers, including policies on what can and can't be sold," it said. The platform claims that more than 99.5% of non-compliant products are removed proactively, before listing.