Hand-me-downs
Loved before? Check it before you use it.
Used gear can be great, but some older cribs, bath seats and car seats don’t meet today’s rules. Check an item, then read what CPSC and NHTSA say about secondhand gear.
Hand-me-down checker
Pick the gear and the month and year on its label. We’ll show what the safety rules say about it. Nothing you pick leaves this page.
What the rules say about secondhand gear
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Selling a recalled product is illegal
It's illegal to sell any recalled product. CPSC's rules apply to anyone who sells consumer products, including thrift stores, consignment stores, charities, yard sales and flea markets.
Source: CPSC Resellers Guide to Selling Safer Products (Publication 254, February 2025)
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Broken or wobbly gear stays off the market
CPSC tells resellers not to sell play yards, walkers, bath seats, toddler bed rails or other durable baby gear that's broken, wobbly, unstable or missing parts, even if it hasn't been recalled.
Source: CPSC Resellers Guide to Selling Safer Products (Publication 254, February 2025)
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Pre-June 2011 cribs
CPSC tells resellers to destroy full-size and non-full-size cribs made before June 28, 2011, unless there's written proof they meet the current standard. No used drop-side crib can meet it, even with new hardware.
Source: CPSC Resellers Guide to Selling Safer Products (Publication 254, February 2025)
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Don't hand down a noncompliant crib
Don't sell, donate or give away a crib that doesn't meet federal crib standards, for example through an online auction site or a thrift store. CPSC recommends taking an old crib apart before throwing it out.
Source: CPSC OnSafety: The New Crib Standard, Questions and Answers
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You can't tell by looking
You can't tell whether a crib meets federal standards just by looking at it. Ask the manufacturer or retailer for the certificate of compliance showing it's certified to 16 CFR 1219 or 16 CFR 1220.
Source: CPSC OnSafety: The New Crib Standard, Questions and Answers
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Old bath seats
CPSC staff tells resellers to destroy infant bath seats made before December 6, 2010, when the federal standard took effect, along with seats that attach to the tub with suction cups, broken seats and seats without permanent warnings.
Source: CPSC Resellers Guide to Selling Safer Products (Publication 254, February 2025)
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Used car seat checklist
A secondhand car seat may be okay only if it's never been in a moderate or severe crash, has labels with its manufacture date and model number, has no recalls, and still has all its parts and its instruction book.