Testing & Laboratory

Toy Testing

With its subgroups, experiments and associated standards.

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Scope

Subgroups within Toy Testing

Each group lands in its own section on the same page; The full list of experiments is there.

01Toy testsMechanical Safety · Flammability · Chemical Migration

Toy tests

Toy Testing — What Does This Testing Field Cover?

The section below describes how the field of Toy Testing works. The conditions, sample requirements and acceptance criteria of the individual tests in this field are given on the relevant test pages.

Toy testing shows that a product is safe in children's use. What sets this family apart is that risk is defined according to the USER: the same product may be hazardous for a child under 36 months and safe for an older child. Age marking is therefore not a marketing preference but a technical decision that determines which requirements apply, and it is justified in the technical file.

At the centre of the field is the risk of CHOKING. Children under 36 months put objects in their mouths; a part that detaches or is small to begin with can block the airway. Assessment with the small parts cylinder is the fundamental criterion for this group, and the tests examine whether the part detaches after use and misuse.

The logic of the tests is not that the toy must not break but that BREAKING must not produce a hazardous outcome. A child drops, pulls, bites and stands on a toy. Drop, tension, compression, torque, impact and tipping tests are therefore applied, and the resulting new state is then assessed: is the detached part a small part, did the broken surface leave a sharp edge, has the internal mechanism become accessible?

On the chemical axis, MIGRATION is what counts. What is measured in a toy is not how much of an element the material contains but how much of it dissolves and transfers under conditions simulating the mouth. Materials are divided into three categories (dry brittle powder, liquid or sticky, scrapable) and different limits apply to each; the amount of material a child could ingest varies by category.

Flammability is the third axis and is critical particularly for costumes, tents and plush toys: how quickly flame spreads across the surface is measured.

Electrical and battery-powered toys bring additional bodies of work: EN 62115 for electrical safety, the relevant battery standards and Battery Regulation obligations for the battery. For toys containing button cells, making the battery compartment impossible for a child to open has become a separate requirement — a swallowed button cell is a cause of serious injury.

Sound level is an item that is often overlooked. For toys used close to the ear (toy telephones, rattles, cap-firing toys) the sound pressure is limited; the risk of hearing damage is assessed.

Market regimes differ and do not substitute for one another: the Toy Safety Directive and CE marking in Europe, and in the United States the CPSIA with mandatory ASTM F963 and a third-party laboratory certificate (CPC). The United States also looks at total lead content while Europe looks at migration; the two approaches can produce different results.

Method groups in this field

Mechanical and physical
Small parts assessment, sharp edges and points, entrapment, cord and drawstring safety, dynamic strength, drop and tipping (EN 71-1).
Flammability
Rate of flame spread and ignition behaviour (EN 71-2); decisive for costumes and plush toys.
Element migration
Migration of specified elements in the three material categories (EN 71-3).
Organic chemicals
Phthalates, flame retardants, azo dyes, preservatives and fragrances (EN 71-9 and REACH restrictions).
Electrical toys
Electrical safety under EN 62115; heating, insulation, battery compartment and charging safety.
Sound and other
Sound pressure measurements; the requirements of EN 71-4 and EN 71-5 for chemistry sets and chemical toys.

Commonly confused in this field

Toy safety cannot be demonstrated with a single standard; the mechanical, flammability and chemical parts are assessed together.
Age marking determines which requirements apply; it must be justified in the technical file and not left to marketing preference.
An ASTM F963 report is not accepted in a CE file; the requirements and test arrangements of the two regimes differ.
Migration and total content are different things; the CPSIA looks at total lead while EN 71-3 looks at migration.
If the material category is chosen incorrectly the limit is applied incorrectly too; the category decision is made before sample preparation.
For toys containing button cells, battery compartment safety is a separate requirement; passing electrical safety is not sufficient.

Which decisions these results support