Date: August 28, 2019
Contact: mediacenter@freeandfairmarketsinitiative.org

FFMI CALLS ON REGULATORS TO INVESTIGATE AMAZON AMID REPORTS OF PRODUCT SAFETY VIOLATIONS     

Regulators Must Step in To Protect Consumers

Robert B. Engel, chief spokesperson for the Free & Fair Markets Initiative (FFMI), released the following statement amid a new report that Amazon was selling more than 4,000 items that have been deemed unsafe by federal agencies, banned by federal regulators, or were deceptively labeled.

“Amazon has long tried to hide behind the convenient label of online marketplace, but the fact is that the company most often handles products just like an online retailer, and it should be held to the same standards every other retailer is held to. This report confirms what advocates and watchdogs have been sounding the alarm about: that Amazon has built a massive distribution system for products that would never make their way into retail stores.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and the Federal Trade Commission must immediately launch investigations into Amazon’s product screening practices for the products it stores and ships through its own facilities. The usual excuses from Amazon simply won’t do. The sad reality is that Amazon refuses to take responsibility for its own retail platform and logistics system.”

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ABOUT THE FREE & FAIR MARKETS INITIATIVE

The Free & Fair Markets Initiative (FFMI) is a nonprofit watchdog committed to scrutinizing Amazon’s harmful practices and promoting a fair, modern marketplace that works for all Americans. For more information on the Free & Fair Markets Initiative, click here.