One of Australia’s largest fast food outlets has been fined more than $150,000 after giving away thousands of free toys in meals without warning that they included deadly button batteries.
Hungry Jack’s dispatched 27,850 Garfield toys powered by button batteries over 10 days in May last year, before recalling them.
They included no warning about the button batteries the toys contained, or the risk they posed to children.
The toys otherwise complied with the national safety standard.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has the power to fine companies up to $10 million for breaches of consumer law or 10 per cent of annual turnover, depending on which is higher.
Hungry Jack’s had an estimated revenue close to $2 billion last financial year.
For this breach, the ACCC fined the fast-food chain $150,240.
In a statement, Hungry Jack’s said it took “immediate steps to stop distribution, issue a product recall” and contact its suppliers and authorities last year.
‘Catastrophic injuries’ possible
Andrea Shoesmith’s four-year-old daughter Summer Steer died on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast in 2013 after ingesting a button battery.
Ms Shoesmith has since campaigned against their use in Australia, which helped usher in new laws in 2023.
She said for Hungry Jack’s to pay such a small fine relative to its revenue was “disgusting”.
“If they’ve given out 27,000 of them, don’t tell me there’s not going to be one child affected by it, because there will be,” she said.
The lithium button batteries are about the size of a 10-cent piece, and if swallowed can burn a hole through the oesophagus, and into organs or the spine.
“It’s like a loaded gun,” Ms Shoesmith said.
“You go to Hungry Jack’s and get a meal and get a loaded gun, and just hope for the best.”
Kidsafe Queensland chief executive Susan Teerds said that unless someone realised immediately that a battery had been swallowed, it may take time for symptoms to show.
“Particularly if the button battery is now flat, it might not work your remote control to the garage door but it can still cause catastrophic injuries,” she said.
Ms Teerds said even if the toys officially met the standard, they remained dangerous.
“Just because a product has a screw-down battery compartment, it doesn’t mean that it is still a safe product,” she said.
“I would avoid any products with button batteries if you’ve got children or dogs in your household.”
Ms Shoesmith feared that even parents who were aware of the danger of button batteries may not know the Garfield toys had them because there was no warning.
“There will be some child that gets sick or dies from it, like Summer,” she said.
“They just shouldn’t be available, let alone putting them in child’s packaging from Hungry Jack’s. That’s ridiculous.”
If someone believes a child has ingested a battery, they should call the Poisons Information Centre on 131126.
