4 out of the 10 tested bassinets failed CHOICE key safety requirements, including bassinets from Kmart, Stokke and Fisher Price
Currently there's an Australian safety standard for cots, but not bassinets
Check our reviews to find the best and safest bassinets before you buy
A safe sleep environment is essential for babies, as parents know. With many newborns spending their first few weeks or months sleeping in a bassinet before moving on to a
larger cot, you’ll want one that offers the safest sleeping space available.
Unfortunately, CHOICE testing has found serious safety failures in a range of bassinets currently being advertised to new parents.
Our testers conduct thorough safety tests on all bassinets that pass through our accredited labs
Four out of the ten recently tested models were found to have safety risks such as a lack of breathable zones, or a poorly fitting or insufficiently firm mattress – both issues that could cause suffocation.
Our testers conduct thorough safety tests on all bassinets that pass through our accredited labs, assessing factors such as choking hazards, breathable zones, mattress firmness and depth of the bassinets, stability of construction and any entrapment hazards.
Bassinets with safety issues
Here are the newly tested bassinets with serious safety issues – click each to see the full reviews and risks.
CHOICE expert Kim Gilmour reveals the risks posed by some types of bassinets.
Lack of safety standard puts babies at risk
“Unfortunately, there’s currently no mandatory Australian safety standard for bassinets like there is for cots,” explains CHOICE baby product expert Kim Gilmour. “This means that year after year we continue to see unsafe bassinets make it onto the shelves.”
“These major safety failures reinforce the need for a new product safety law, which CHOICE continues to campaign for. This new law would help to stop unsafe products from ever hitting the market in the first place.”
Year after year we continue to see unsafe bassinets make it onto the shelves
Kim Gilmour, CHOICE expert
If you’ve bought any of these bassinets, our advice is to take it back to the retailer and ask for a refund. If the retailer doesn’t give you a fair refund, you can escalate your complaint to your state or territory fair trading body.
In the past, CHOICE experts have uncovered a raft of risks with the bassinets we’ve tested, including head and limb entrapment,
suffocation and choking hazards, insufficiently firm mattresses and more.
The mattress on this Fisher Price bassinet doesn’t fit the bassinet properly, which can cause a suffocation risk.
In our latest test, the most concerning findings were around
ill-fitting mattresses and non-breathable areas on the side of bassinets that
can create an unsafe sleeping environment.
Although there isn’t a safety
standard for bassinets in Australia, there is a standard test for cot mattress
firmness, which we conducted on the bassinets in our accredited laboratory.
“Three of the bassinets we failed – from Childcare, Stokke and Fisher Price – had mattresses that
were too soft, with coverings that puffed at the sides and ends, posing a
suffocation risk if your baby rolls over or moves,” says Kim.
The most concerning findings were around ill-fitting mattresses and non-breathable areas on the side of bassinets
“Other failures – for the
Kmart Anko cot and a second failure for the Childcare cot – were due to the
fact that these bassinets have areas of non-breathable material around the
edges of the bassinet, which also present a suffocation risk if an infant
happens to roll onto their side.
“When
choosing a bassinet, look for things such as adequate breathable zones on all
four sides of the bassinet, sturdy construction and a mattress that fits snugly
around all sides with no gaps,” says Kim.
In response to our findings, Kmart says that the bassinet, “is designed, constructed and tested to meet the European Standard, the EN 1130:2019 Children’s furniture – Cribs – Safety requirements and test methods… We note your comments on non-breathable material. We have incorporated in our design to have as much breathable zone as possible without impacting the structural strength of the bassinet. We are keen to understand more about testing conducted by CHOICE, as it may assist in informing product assessments along with future product iterations.”
Stokke
In response to the CHOICE findings, Stokke says: “We are surprised to see this result from CHOICE. Both the Sleepi V3 bed and mini mattress were tested in [a] third-party lab for the mattress firmness testing to the Australia standard.” Stokke had the mattress urgently retested by an accredited third-party lab, where the result passed. CHOICE stands by its results on the model tested.
Childcare
In response to our findings, the manufacturer provided us with a test report from an accredited lab saying its mattress passed the firmness test. It also said it did not think the criteria we test breathability to was applicable to the product. However, in the absence of an Australian standard, CHOICE stands by our test method and test result.
Fisher Price
We contacted Fisher Price for comment but have had no response.
Past tests have found a suffocation hazard warning on a bassinet that, ironically, was a hazard itself.
Past failures still on the market
These bassinets that failed CHOICE safety tests in previous years are still available to buy new:
4baby Serenity
4baby Sleep and Stay
Baby Inc Sonno Bassinet N9859
Bednest Bassinet
Chicco next2me 10840
Pottery Barn Kids Bassinet and Mattress set
Troll Sun Bassinet
Valco Rico
You can view discontinued models that have failed safety tests using our bassinets comparison table, in case you’re looking to buy a bassinet second-hand or want to find out about a model you already own.
Pru Engel is the Audience and engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaings team on content covering issues such as product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
Pru Engel is the Audience and engagement editor at CHOICE. Her job is to ensure as many Australians as possible know about the great work we do at CHOICE.
She works closely with our testers and experts to find the gems of information in our data and research that will resonate with Australian consumers and help them make the best decisions, whether they're purchasing an air fryer, looking for a new mattress or trying to find the cheapest car insurance. She also helps to drive meaningful change for consumers by collaborating with our Campaings team on content covering issues such as product safety and scams.
Prior to CHOICE, Pru worked as an editor at many of Australia's leading food and lifestyle titles.
Pru has a Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism) from the University of Technology, Sydney.
Find Pru on LinkedIn.
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