Selling bikes, life jackets, pools and fitness gear online

Sporting goods look like the most relaxed category to list: a bike, a float, a set of dumbbells. A few words in it are regulated, though, and one of them is a phrase buyers look for. "Coast Guard approved" may be said only of life jackets the Coast Guard has approved. Bicycles have federal rules too, and fitness and weight-loss claims need evidence.

This page covers bicycles, life jackets, fitness claims and swim aids. E-bikes, e-scooters and hoverboards are covered on the lithium battery rules page.

What this page covers: bicycles, life jackets, pools and pool floats, trampolines and fitness machines.

The short version

• Bicycles must meet the CPSC bicycle rules, reflectors and labelling included.
• "Coast Guard approved" may be said only of approved life jackets.
• Fitness and weight-loss claims need evidence.
• Swim aids should never be shown as a substitute for supervision or a life jacket.

What rules do bicycles have to meet?

Bicycles sold in the US must meet the CPSC bicycle rules, including reflectors and labelling. Show the reflectors in your images. A bike photographed without them invites the question.

When can a life jacket be called Coast Guard approved?

"Coast Guard approved" may be used only for life jackets with Coast Guard approval. A swim vest, float or buoyancy aid without it should never be called a life jacket or described as approved.

For swim aids and pool floats:

• Never show them as a substitute for supervision or a life jacket.
• Show an adult within reach of any child in the water.
• Describe them as aids or toys, never as safety equipment.

Do fitness claims need evidence?

Yes. Claims about fitness results or weight loss need evidence. "Burns fat fast" is a claim. "Adjustable resistance", with the range from your specification, is a description.

What should sporting goods images show?

Sporting goods images should show the real size, every part in the box and the safety features:

• The product at its real size, with a person where it helps show scale.
• Every part in the box, for machines and trampolines that arrive in pieces.
• Safety features such as nets, pads and reflectors, clearly visible.

How Commicorn helps

• Real size, from your measurements. The Dimensions image shows the measurements you give us.
• Every piece in the box. What's in the set lays out the pieces cut from your photo.
• Your claims, from your details. The listing copy is written from the details you give us. Check every fitness claim against your evidence before you export.

Questions sellers ask

What does "Coast Guard approved" mean on a life jacket?

That the US Coast Guard has approved the life jacket. "Coast Guard approved" may be said only of life jackets with that approval.

Can I call a swim vest a life jacket?

Not without Coast Guard approval. A swim vest, float or buoyancy aid without it should never be called a life jacket or described as approved.

Do bicycles need reflectors to be sold in the US?

Yes. Bicycles sold in the US must meet the CPSC bicycle rules, including reflectors and labelling.

Can I say a fitness product burns fat?

Only with evidence. Claims about fitness results or weight loss need evidence, and "burns fat fast" is a claim.

How should swim aids be shown in images?

Never as a substitute for supervision or a life jacket, and with an adult within reach of any child in the water.

Before you list

Have the reflectors and labelling visible on every bicycle you photograph, the Coast Guard approval for any life jacket, and the evidence behind every fitness or weight-loss claim ready before the listing goes live. On a borderline product, two rules settle it: 46 CFR 160 decides whether a flotation product may be called an approved life jacket, and the CPSC bicycle rules at 16 CFR 1512 decide what a bike must carry.