KUALA LUMPUR: More than 20,000 units sold. That is the estimated number of children’s helmets sold on a popular e-commerce platform.

       Unfortunately, these helmets enjoying lucrative sales have not been approved for use by Sirim, Malaysia’s leading certification, inspection and testing body.

       Worse still, parents are also snapping up toy helmets for their children to wear when riding pillion on motorcycles.

       An investigation by Bernama found that the helmets supplied to the e-commerce site were from 20 vendors, many of whom said most buyers choose toy helmets to “protect their children’s heads”.

       Disguised as buyers, the news agency’s reporters spoke to several vendors and their conversations revealed that misrepresentation of facts could be contributing to the purchase of helmets that do not bear the Sirim safety mark.

       According to a vendor, toy helmets plastered with pictures of famous Marvel comic superheroes and cartoon characters are popular among parents shopping for a “safety” helmet for their children.

       These helmets are sold for as low as RM20 each.

       A check at several toy retail outlets located in Jalan Raja Laut here also revealed that parents and guardians are buying toy helmets for their children to wear.

       According to a salesperson at one of the toy stores, parents prefer buying toy helmets as they are lighter and more comfortable for their children to wear.

       Priced at between RM35 and RM45, the toy helmets are cheaper than the Sirim-approved ones which cost around RM65 each.

       The reporters managed to examine several toy helmet models said to be selling well at the Jalan Raja Laut toy shops and found that they are made of plastic that is easily breakable.

       Naturally, they are no match for the Sirim-certified models that have all the proper safety features to protect the wearer against serious head injuries when hitting a hard surface in the event of a crash.

       Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations (Fomca) deputy secretary-general Nur Asyikin Aminuddin said the issue is getting out of hand due to a lack of effective enforcement.

       “In my view, items like these are actively being sold on online platforms due to the absence of a mechanism to regulate traders operating on digital platforms. The government must introduce legislation to regulate these digital platforms,” she said.

       Asked to comment on this, Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry’s Kuala Lumpur director Ariffin Samsudin said monitoring and enforcement activities with regard to online sales would only be carried out if they receive complaints from the public.

       “There are no restrictions to online selling, but it is an offence for a merchant to provide misleading information as it’s considered as bait advertising or false or misleading representation,” he said.

       Ariffin added that the public must check the specifications of the safety helmet they intend to buy and also ensure it is approved by Sirim.