Does Zazzle or the item creator have the responsibility of warning labels? Magnetic buttons have a warning on the magnet part about using with pacemaker’s images as seen in one of Zazzle’s image options, and small acrylic items have a notice of choking hazard for children 3 and under. So, do we have to emphasize these kind of warnings are does what Zazzle does enough?
I love the question, because it shows the real problem: we, as designers, never see the final product. We don’t get material specs, safety sheets, or production details. Zazzle works with different manufacturers, and those manufacturers add the legally required warnings to the physical items. That’s their responsibility, not ours.
If a magnet needs a pacemaker warning or acrylic needs a choking‑hazard label, the producer will add it. We can’t warn about things we don’t know, don’t see, and don’t control.
Of course, if a designer intentionally creates something that could cause harm – for example a pattern meant to interfere with cameras or a 3D object with risky geometry – then the designer should add a warning. But accidental effects from a flat print or a coaster? That’s not on us.
The only tricky part for me personally: legal issues with templates in my country. If a customer uses my design on a product that promotes something forbidden here, I need to be careful. I already asked my lawyer about that.
And yes, I add small notes to my marble coasters, simply because marble is not dishwasher‑safe. That’s more a friendly hint than a legal warning.
In short: Product‑related safety warnings are the manufacturer’s job, not the designer’s. We can only warn about things we intentionally create.
If you have these concerns, you should discuss them with a lawyer.
For product specific safety warnings like pacemaker cautions on magnets or choking hazards on small acrylic items the responsibility falls on Zazzle as the manufacturer, not the creator/artist. Those warnings are already included in the About This Product section because they come from the brand or the base product itself.
Creators don’t control the physical product, packaging, or safety standards, so we aren’t required to repeat those warnings in our design descriptions. As long as Zazzle includes the appropriate notice on the product page, that fulfills the safety requirement.
Design descriptions are meant to explain the artwork, not replace the manufacturer’s safety labeling. Zazzle’s built‑in warnings are enough. And just to clarify, I have a husband with an ICD and a pacemaker, and when manufacturers discuss “magnet warnings,” they are not referring to fridge magnets. They’re talking about strongneodymium magnets or magnetic closures that can interfere with implanted cardiac devices. I watch my husband daily move the fridge magnets that I bought at Zazzle , with ease and absolutely no interference