Children's nightwear

Children's nightwear: the basics

All clothing and fabric will burn, and around heaters or fires, you need to be extra careful about the safety of your children’s nightwear.

There are special rules for manufacturing children's nightwear and the labels on them can help you make safer choices for your children.

Before you buy children's nightwear

All clothing and fabrics will burn. Some may burn at a slower rate than others but all fabric will eventually burn.

Find out more about the children's nightwear safety standard.

Buy nightwear that fits snugly

Buy nightwear which is snug fitting whenever possible. Nightwear which fits snugly to the body reduces the risk of catching fire compared with baggy, loose nightwear.
It's important to get the right size for your child. Don't buy garments for your child to "grow into" as this may mean they aren't as snug fitting as the manufacturer intended.

Remember too that any hand-me-downs you get for your child must fit snugly before you dress your child in them. If you get hand-me-downs that are a couple of sizes too big, wait until they've grown enough to fit into them. As we know - it won't take long.

Pay attention to the fire danger labels

There are three labels for children’s nightwear:

This means that the garment is a lower fire risk. This doesn't mean that there is no fire risk. These garments are either made of a fabric that burns more slowly, or the garment is designed to be worn snug fitting to reduce risk.

Buy "low fire danger" labelled children’s nightwear whenever possible.

This means that the garment is made of a higher fire risk fabric and is designed to be worn snug-fitting to reduce risk.

Make sure that nightwear with this label fits children snugly.

This means that the garment is a higher fire risk – better to use in summer than winter, as it is less likely to be used near a heater or fireplace.

Hand sewing children's nightwear

Polyester does not burn as quickly as cotton and is suitable for children’s nightwear.
If you are using cotton, make close-fitting, ski-type pyjamas. Flames do not spread so quickly over close-fitting garments

For either type of fabric, use polyester thread.

Wearing children's nightwear safely
Pay attention to the labels on the nightwear. Children should stay at least a metre from the heater at all times.

When children are wearing nightwear with an orange label the nightwear should fit snugly.

If children are wearing nightwear with a red label they should stay far away from any heaters or fires. There is a high risk of the nightwear catching fire.

Got a problem with children's nightwear?

If a shop is selling children's nightwear that does not meet the mandatory standard you can report it to the Commerce Commission.
The Commerce Commission enforces the Children's Nightwear Product Safety Standard. You can contact them at:
Phone: 0800 943 600
Email: contact@comcom.govt.nz  
Address: PO Box 2351, Wellington
Website: www.comcom.govt.nz