World-famous children's entertainers The Wiggles have admitted to selling a popular yellow and black headband for kids without warning parents about the dangers of button batteries.
The Emma Wiggle headband, which has four flashing lights powered by batteries, was sold at live concerts, retailers and online between June 2022 and March 2024.
It was recalled in August 2024 by the manufacturer CA Australia over safety concerns for young children who could choke by ingesting the batteries.
The group and the manufacturer have been given a slap on the wrist by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, agreeing to remedy their admission to likely breaching consumer law.
The watchdog's Catriona Lowe said button batteries pose a significant risk to vulnerable young children and mandatory standards are an important step in helping to prevent injuries to children.
"Without a warning on the product, parents may not have known it contained button batteries and not understood the severity of the risk," she said on Tuesday.
"If swallowed, a button battery can become stuck in a child's throat and result in catastrophic injuries, and even death, in as little as two hours."
As part of its co-operation with the ACCC's investigation, The Wiggles have committed to produce an episode of its podcast discussing the Emma Bow headband recall and safety issues relating to button batteries and children's toys.
Researchers have found approximately 200 children per year are potentially exposed to button battery injury in Australia with at least a dozen per year experiencing severe injury.
The safety admission is the latest legal trouble for the group after it was sued by its ex-CEO.
The former boss launched legal action in the Federal Court in September arguing he was dismissed without a reasonable basis by the group after complaining about the hiring of blue Wiggle Anthony Field's friends and family members.
But The Wiggles allege the former CEO was fired because his "overall performance was not satisfactory" and necessary trust in him had been lost.
