EN 14682: Cords and Drawstrings on Children's Clothing

Why drawstrings matter for Pakistani exporters

In FY2024-25 Pakistan exported US$5,010.5 million of knitwear and US$4,128.6 million of readymade garments (Towel Manufacturers' Association of Pakistan, from Pakistan Bureau of Statistics data). Hoodies, joggers, swimwear and nightwear for children sit inside those figures, and they are the styles where cords cause trouble.

Cords are among the most common reasons EU authorities flag children's clothing. The UK Office for Product Safety and Standards notes that in 2019 clothing, textiles and fashion items were the third most notified product group on the EU rapid alert system, and 63% of those notifications were for drawstrings or cords in children's clothing (OPSS, PRISM worked example). Earlier, a joint project by 11 Member States between Nov 2008 and Feb 2010 produced more than 400 notifications of garments that did not meet the standard (Commission Decision 2011/196/EU).

A notified style is usually withdrawn or recalled across the market, and the cost lands on the brand and its supplier after the goods have shipped.

The legal status of EN 14682

The General Product Safety Regulation keeps the link: standards whose references were published under the old General Product Safety Directive continue to give a presumption of conformity (Regulation (EU) 2023/988, recital 27). The standard itself is voluntary, but a garment that does not meet it has to be shown safe some other way, which is hard to do for a cord a market surveillance authority has already measured.

UK sources: OPSS and Warwickshire Trading Standards. US sources: 16 CFR 1120 and CPSC.

What EN 14682 covers, and what it does not

The standard covers cords and drawstrings on children's clothing up to the age of 14, including disguise costumes and ski apparel (EN 14682:2014, clause 1). It does not apply to:

• Child use and care articles such as bibs, nappies and soother holders

• Footwear, gloves, hats, bonnets and scarves

• Neckties worn with a shirt or blouse, belts (except tied belts, which are covered) and braces

• Religious clothing, and celebratory clothing worn for limited periods under supervision

• Specialist sportswear worn for limited periods under supervision, such as rugby shorts, wet suits and dancewear, unless commonly worn as day wear or night wear

• Theatrical costumes, aprons worn over day wear for limited periods, and bags and purses

The standard also recommends an individual risk assessment of every garment, because no standard can list every hazard. Annex C asks manufacturers to consider how a product is likely to be used, not what it is called.

The garment zones

EN 14682:2014 sets its requirements by area of the garment and by age group (EN 14682:2014, clause 3):

The 2014 edition changed several of these clauses compared with 2007: decorative cords are now allowed for young children under restrictions, the chest and waist rules were relaxed for close-fitting garments and tightened for flowing ones such as unbuttoned coats, and the sleeve rules now cover cords anywhere on a sleeve of any length. Specifications written against the 2007 edition need checking against the current clauses.

Young children: head, neck and upper chest

Young children means clothing for children under 7 years or up to 134 cm in height (Warwickshire Trading Standards). The UK Office for Product Safety and Standards summarises the 2014 requirements for this zone (OPSS):

• No drawstrings or functional cords in the head, neck or upper chest area.

• No decorative cords anywhere on the hood or at the back of the neck.

• Elsewhere in the neck and upper chest, decorative cords may have free ends no longer than 7.5 cm, with no knots, toggles or three-dimensional embellishments.

• Decorative cords must not be positioned so they can tie across the throat.

A bow on a toddler's top that ties at the front of the neck, made from a 34.2 cm cord, is the example OPSS uses for a garment that fails. OPSS also cites the Child Accident Prevention Trust: a toddler tangled in a blind cord can lose consciousness in 15 seconds.

The standard's introduction names the two accident patterns it was written against: hood cords of younger children caught in playground equipment such as slides, and cords from the waist and lower hems of older children caught in bus doors, ski lifts and bicycles (EN 14682:2014).

For older children and young persons, clause 3.3 sets separate requirements, including rules for shoulder straps and halter necks. Agree the exact clause with the buyer; this guide does not restate figures it could not check against the 2014 text.

The US rules: 16 CFR 1120 and ASTM F1816

Under 16 CFR 1120, children's upper outerwear in sizes 2T to 16, or the equivalent, with one or more drawstrings that do not conform to ASTM F1816-97 is a substantial product hazard. Such garments are subject to reporting and recall, and are refused entry into the US (16 CFR 1120.1 and 1120.3). CPSC summarises the requirements (CPSC):

The rule counts girls' and boys' size Large as size 12 and Extra-Large as size 16, and a garment labelled with a size range is covered if any size in the range is (16 CFR 1120.3(b)(2)). CPSC staff know of 26 deaths and 73 nonfatal incidents linked to neck and hood drawstrings on children's outerwear from Jan 1985 to Jun 2019.

How cords are measured

Annex D of EN 14682:2014 gives the measuring methods, and the result depends on using the right one (EN 14682:2014):

• Cord length with one free end

• Cords with no free ends

• Garment open to its largest and laid flat

• Garment in its relaxed natural state

• Length of a sash or tied belt

The US rule measures waist and bottom drawstrings with the garment expanded to its fullest width. A cord that passes with the garment relaxed can fail when it is opened out, so the measurement state belongs in the inspection checklist.

Where to catch drawstring problems

The during-production inspection guide and the pre-shipment inspection guide cover how these checks fit into an inspection, and the AQL guide covers sample sizes. A cord fault is a safety defect, so agree with the buyer whether one is a critical defect with zero acceptance before production starts.

Trims on children's clothing: what a lab can test

Cord safety is measured, not tested in a laboratory. The trims on the cord ends are tested. EN 14682 is not on the Tti Labs ISO/IEC 17025 scope, PNAC LAB-022; these related methods are:

Metal toggles, cord ends, eyelets and snaps are where these apply. The REACH testing guide covers the EU nickel limit. Tti Labs lists its child safety tests on the textiles and apparel page.

How Tti Inspections fits

Tti Inspections' ISO/IEC 17020 accreditation, PNAC IB-006, covers textile inspections (pre-shipment, final random, during production and fabric inspection) against regulations, standards and buyer specifications. Cord checks to the clause the buyer names can be added to the inspection checklist, measured on the sampled pieces and reported with the other defects (Tti Inspections).

Ask Tti Inspections to add cord checks to an inspection