Why do tags on pillows and mattress' read "Do not remove this tag under penalty of law".?

Question

I just answered a question... has anyone removed the tags on pillows etc... it just made me think.

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

From The Arizona Republic Newspaper On-line Edition.
October 30, 2007


Go ahead and rip tags off pillows.

What will really happen if I rip off the tag on my pillows? My throw pillows look so tacky on my couch with these big tags flapping around, but I don't want to go to the slammer over a tag.

Don't you fret your pretty little head about it.

The fact of the matter is you are free to go through your house and tear off all the "do not remove" tags that you can find on your mattress or pillows or whatever. You can even go over to the neighbor's house and tear off all their tags, too, although I think you should ask them first.

The warning is not meant for consumers, but for merchants and manufacturers.

Back in the old days when business people were not as high-principled and as scrupulously honest as they are today, some manufacturers were not too picky about the materials they used to stuff mattresses and the like. So you might have ended up sleeping on vermin or stuff that could make you sick or a dead cow or something. Well, probably not a dead cow.

Anyway, the government stepped in and required them to put a tag on the product listing its contents, and it carried the warning "Do Not Remove Under Penalty of Law." That never applied to you, just to the manufacturers and dealers, but lots of people didn't understand that.

Nowadays the tag says, "This tag may not be removed except by the consumer."

I don't know if anyone ever went around to the stores to see if everything was properly tagged or not. That seems like a lot of extra work, and you know how efficient the government is.

Source(s):

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic…

Answer 2

To list the contents of the pillow or mattress, mostly to prove how fire-retardant they are, so that you know what you are getting when you buy it. It's also to show you which end of the pillow to put in the pillowcase first. (small joke)

Source(s):

EDIT: I'm coming in awfully late on this one... anyway it looks like Elizabeth has got it! Imagine... a newspaper article on this very subject the day it's brought up. That's great!

Answer 3

Consumer protection. The warning tag must still be on the item until it is sold.

Answer 4

Because in the US they must list what the pillows are made of and what the content is. Once you purchase a pillow you can remove the tag