Product safety reportOPSS
Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 safety warning over a suffocation risk
Product Safety Report for Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 and Investigate Box 9 presenting a serious risk to health.
Take it out of the cot or pram now, and put your baby to sleep on their back on a firm, flat surface.
Product image from the OPSS safety notice 
Check your product
Only products that match these details are covered. Have your pack in front of you.
3 identifiers listed for this notice.
Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9
- ModelOn the rating label, base, back or box.
- Explore Box 9
- chain reactions
- Investigate Box 9
What to do now
Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 poses a suffocation risk.
- Take it out of the cot or pram now, and put your baby to sleep on their back on a firm, flat surface.
- Keep it away from babies and young children.
- Because the product was found unsafe on an online marketplace, use the platform’s order page to contact the seller.
- Report it to Trading Standards through the Citizens Advice consumer service if the seller does not respond.
Why it matters. Babies cannot move away from something covering their face. Pillows, padded sleeping bags and soft items in the cot are linked to sleep deaths, and that is why many of these products fail UK safety rules.
If someone has been hurt
Look out for
- a baby who seems to struggle to breathe
Get help urgently
- a baby or child who is not breathing or has turned blue — call 999 immediately
This is general information based on NHS public guidance, not medical advice. In an emergency call 999. For urgent advice use NHS 111 (NHS 24 on 111 in Scotland) or, in Northern Ireland, your GP or out-of-hours service.
Getting your money back
A product safety report usually means the product was bought online and the marketplace has removed the listing. Ask the seller for a refund through the platform where you bought it; many marketplaces have their own buyer protection.
If you paid by credit card and it cost over £100, Section 75 may apply; otherwise your bank may be able to raise a chargeback.
From the official notice
Published by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (2501-0087). Quoted as issued.
Summary
Product Safety Report for Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 and Investigate Box 9 presenting a serious risk to health.
The risk
The product presents a serious health risk as it includes water beads that expand to more than 50% of their original size within 12 hours of soaking them in water. If the small, dehydrated bead is swallowed by a young child, the bead may expand inside the digestive tract causing a blockage. The product also presents a risk of asphyxiation as if a bead is swallowed in its hydrated form, it may block a young child’s airway leading to aspiration.
OPSS has published a Product Safety Alert for water beads, which can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/product-safety-alerts-reports-recalls/product-safety-alert-water-beads-psa7
The product does not meet the requirements of the Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011 or the Food Imitations (Safety) Regulations 1989.
Action taken
Letterbox Labs have warned owners of the risks of water beads, and withdrawn water beads from their experiment kit boxes.
Advice to consumers
Letterbox Lab have issued a safety warning to affected consumers advising them of the risks associated with water beads.
Affected consumers should dispose of the water beads immediately with your household waste or ensure that they are stored safely out of reach of children and animals. Letterbox Lab have removed all water beads from Letterbox Lab Boxes.
Additional information
PSD case number: 2501-0087
Notified by: Local Authority Trading Standards
Product description
Kids science kit for kids aged 6+, containing 3 experiments, one of which includes a small plastic bag of expanding water beads. Packaged in a purple cardboard box.
Open the OPSS notice
Questions
Why has Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 been reported?
Letterbox Lab Explore Box 9 poses a suffocation risk. Babies cannot move away from something covering their face. Pillows, padded sleeping bags and soft items in the cot are linked to sleep deaths, and that is why many of these products fail UK safety rules.
How do I know if my product is affected?
Compare the model on your product with the details listed under “Check your product” on this page. Only items that match are covered by the notice.
What should I do now?
Take it out of the cot or pram now, and put your baby to sleep on their back on a firm, flat surface. Keep it away from babies and young children.
Can I get a refund or a repair?
A product safety report usually means the product was bought online and the marketplace has removed the listing. Ask the seller for a refund through the platform where you bought it; many marketplaces have their own buyer protection. If you paid by credit card and it cost over £100, Section 75 may apply; otherwise your bank may be able to raise a chargeback.
