Amid recalls, thrift stores take 2d look at donated toys

The manager of a Waltham thrift store recently saw a child playing with a donated Thomas the Tank Engine toy and snatched it out of his hands.

He then went back into the storeroom and saw several more of the Chinese-made toys, which have been recalled because of lead paint concerns, waiting to be be put out for sale.

"It looked like [the donor] scratched the paint off to test them and then donated them," said Mark Pochesci, manager of Global Thrift. "I was sick to my stomach."

This summer's wave of recalls, including several of toys made in China, has put thrift and resale shops on the spot, prompting them to check donated toys against recall lists before placing them on store shelves. Some stores said they already had policies in place to prevent the resale of dangerous items, even before the latest spate of recalls, but others said they were grappling with how to stay abreast of recalls, given the enormous volume and variety of donated goods.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission averages about 450 product recalls a year. So far this year, about 45 of those have been for toys, said spokesman Scott Wolfson. The June recall of the Thomas and Friends toys involved about 1.5 million wooden railway toys. It was followed this month by massive recalls from manufacturers Fisher-Price and Mattel, which announced that about 10 million toys made in China were being recalled due either to lead paint or tiny magnets that could cause intestinal perforation if swallowed.

Pochesci said he regularly checks websites for product recall notices. He said his store has also been systematically removing many painted toys and all toys made in China, as a precaution.

In Jamaica Plain, the resale shop Boomerangs stopped selling used toys as a result of this summer's recalls. Manager Courtney Lee said that over the years the store has stopped selling toys at times due to safety concerns and poor sales, but had brought them back when customers asked for them. Lee said the store didn't have an established policy to prevent recalled products from going out on the sales floor.

"We get so much stuff in that it's really hard to keep track of things," Lee said. "A lot of stuff doesn't come in the original packaging."

The manager of the the Society of St. Vincent de Paul's store in Plainville said it no longer sells toys at all, in part because of concerns about recalls.

Christopher Trudeau, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul's director of operations for most of Eastern Massachusetts, said that the six stores in his jurisdiction get regular recall bulletins from the national headquarters. Staff also try to accept only toys that are new and in the box.

"We do our best to make sure all the pieces are there, that all the necessary documentation is there, but anything that looks like it has been opened or tampered with we usually throw away," Trudeau said.

Major Dennis Gensler of the Salvation Army, who oversees about 40 adult rehabilitation centers in the Eastern United States where donations are sorted, said that the organization was sending personnel out to inspect stores and make sure none of the recently recalled products are on the shelves.

Adele Meyer, who heads the National Association of Resale and Thrift Stores, urges members to sign up for the Consumer Product Safety Commission's e-mail alerts. The association also devotes a significant portion of its website to product safety, including an 11-page reference booklet it developed with the CPSC that helps shop owners determine if a product is hazardous. She said many of the children's resale shops belonging to her association have also included information about the toy recalls in their store handouts or e-mail newsletters.

Wolfson said the CPSC tries to make it easier for thrift and resale stores to keep track of which products are dangerous. They have hosted seminars for managers and employees and have a host of resources on their website, cpsc.gov. Anyone can sign up for those e-mailed alerts, which are issued whenever a product is recalled, Wolfson added.

Wolfson agreed with many thrift store and resale shop owners who say that donors need to play a role in preventing the sale of unsafe products.

"Before the seller goes with their goods to the thrift shop, we'd like them to take five minutes and check our website," said Wolfson. Both cpsc.gov and recalls.gov allow users to search for recalls on products dating to 1973.

"It's just a good safeguard before they leave the house with the product."

Stephanie V. Siek can be reached at ssiek@globe.com.