New Carriages and Strollers Regulations in force as of June 7

New federal Carriages and Strollers Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette and came into force on June 7, 2023 (the New Regulations). The New Regulations repeal and replace the former regulations and are aimed at addressing current carriage and stroller designs and aligning Canadian regulatory requirements with international standards. While industry is advised to review the New Regulations carefully to ensure continued compliance, we provide this overview of the major changes.  

Updated definitions

Consistent with the focus on addressing new carriage and stroller designs, the definitions of “carriage” and “stroller” have been expanded to include wheeled vehicles that can be converted to function as a carriage or stroller.  

Industry should also pay close attention to the added definitions of “good laboratory practices” and “good scientific practices,” which specifically incorporate the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Principles of Good Laboratory Practice and the OECD Guidelines for the Testing of Chemicals. As discussed below, the New Regulations require industry to follow these laboratory and scientific practices when testing carriages and strollers for the presence of certain restricted substances. 

Mechanical hazard requirements

To align more closely with international standards, under the New Regulations, all carriages and strollers must comply with either ASTM F833 or ISO 31110, each as amended and subject to some limited exclusions. To the extent that changes are made to either ASTM F833 or ISO 31110, the New Regulations provide for a transition period for industry to make changes to meet the revised standards. In the case of manufacturing and importing, industry will have a grace period of 180 days from the date the revised applicable standard is published, and in the case of advertising or sale, industry will have a grace period of 365 days from the date the revised applicable standard is published.

Industry may notice that certain testing methods and mechanical requirements that were required under the prior regulations - such as those addressing small parts, sharp parts, latching and stability - are no longer present in the New Regulations. However, these requirements still exist: they are now incorporated by reference to ASTM F833 and ISO 31110. In this way, the New Regulations will remain current with evolving methods and standards without the need for legislative amendments.  

Focus on harmful substances

The New Regulations make explicit the limitations and prohibitions on using certain harmful and toxic substances, such as lead, mercury, carbon tetrachloride, benzene, boric acids, and others. The New Regulations also adopt limits on the presence of phthalates in carriages and strollers that track the requirements set out in the Phthalates Regulations. Industry is required to follow good scientific practices and good laboratory practices to ensure the presence of these substances is within acceptable limits. 

Warning and information labels

The New Regulations contain updated requirements on the presentation of mandated warning labels and product information, including more stringent font and colour requirements, and specific language that must be present on warning labels. Industry should review and update its existing labelling standards to ensure compliance with the New Regulations going forward.

Transitional period

The New Regulations contain a transitional provision that allows industry a period of 180 days from the coming in force date to meet the requirements of the New Regulations. That means all carriages and strollers that are manufactured, imported, advertised or sold in Canada must meet the requirements set out in the New Regulations by December 4, 2023, at the latest.