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Despite having a policy forbidding the sale of recalled items, Ebay has been struggling to respect this rule. This is particularly nerve-racking following the massive recall of Mattel toys manufactured in China.

The company has recalled over 18.6 millions toys worldwide after some were found to contain high levels of lead or small detaching pieces. But don’t be surprised to find some of these toys selling like hot cakes on Ebay.

This is what reveals a study by Keri Brown Kirschman, an assistant psychology professor at the University of Dayton, realized between 1992-2004 and published today in Injury Prevention, a peer review magazine.

“Most of the recalled items were listed for sale from addresses within the United States, with sellers from Canada, Australia, Great Britain, and Ireland also represented. On average, six bids were placed on each recalled item, with 70% of auctions eventuating in a sale,” states the study’s conclusions.

The test sample, 150 children’s toys recalled for various safety reasons, was taken from a list put together by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. The common criteria for these toys were that at least 5000 units had been recalled or that they constituted a serious health risk.

As you can tell by visiting the Ebay website, some of these items are labeled as “rare”, which is true considering recent events, but particularly misleading to any unsuspecting parent.

“The products included play yards, baby walkers, bassinets and safety devices. About 70 per cent of recalled items tracked were sold, said Ms. Brown Kirshman in an AP report picked up by the CBC.

"We have been working very closely with the CPSC for a number of years now to educate buyers and sellers about recalls and to enforce this policy," said Nichola Sharpe, a spokesperson for Ebay in an interview with the Associated Press.