Amazon, Target and Walmart Will Stop Selling Water Beads

Three of the United States’s largest retailers, Amazon, Target, and Walmart, have announced they will no longer sell water beads, which are often marketed for children with development disorders. The beads are made of polymers, and in water, they can expand about 150-1500 times their original size. Public pressure has grown to remove water beads from stores after numerous reports of injuries and deaths of children who have either swallowed the beads of put them in their ears and noses. If your child was injured or died as a result of these water beads, you should call the experienced Chicago-based product liability attorneys of Moll Law Group to determine whether you have recourse against the manufacturer.

Call Moll Law Group About Your Child’s Water Bead Injuries

Water beads seem to be harmless, but they can grow to the size of a tennis ball when exposed to water. Amazon told “Good Morning America” that its policy for third party sellers of water beads has been updated. They will monitor store listings for these toys; Amazon won’t permit the sale of water beads marketed to children to use for sensory play, art supplies, or toys. Similarly, Target told “Good Morning America” it has stopped sale of water beads marketed to children ages 12 and under, both in its stores and online. Walmart likewise announced it would remove the beads in its physical storefronts and its online store.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has warned about water bead injuries in babies and children for years, as have some parents. Babies have died after ingestion of water beads. Around 52,000 of Buffalo Games’s Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kits were recalled in September 2023. The company claimed that it had the product tested to Children’s Product Safety standards by a lab approved by the CPSC, and that the product passed those tests, including the ASTM standard for materials that expand, for ages four and up. It also emphasized its package warning about the beads expanding. Buffalo Games asked consumers to contact them to return the Ultimate Water Beads for a full refund. The CPSC has asked parents to report water bead injuries to the agency at SaferProducts.gov.

If your child was already seriously injured or killed, a full refund will likely feel like an inadequate remedy. You may be able to recover damages by bringing a product liability lawsuit on the grounds that the beads are defective in terms of their design, marketing, or manufacturing. Often marketing claims involve failures to adequately warn of a product’s hazards.

When our attorneys are able to establish liability, we may be able to recover compensatory damages, including pain and suffering, medical expenses, mental anguish, as well as losses you experienced as a result of the incident, for you and your child. In some cases, it may be appropriate to negotiate a structured settlement.

If your child was injured by water beads, you should discuss your injuries and what happened with the trustworthy product liability lawyers of Moll Law Group. We represent injured plaintiffs and their families across the country. Please complete our online form or call us at 312.462.1700.