BOLTON firm Cosatto has come under fire on national TV after one of its best-known prams proved prone to collapsing with a baby inside.

BBC One’s Watchdog programme showed how the Giggle pram, a £400 three-in-one baby travel system that combines a carrycot for newborns and a pushchair for growing tots, attracted complaints from more than 20 viewers about how it collapsed unexpectedly.

A piece of plastic joining the front of the frame to the wheel had, in some cases, suddenly snapped.

Watchdog said that up to 4,000 Giggle prams may have the problem.

A spokesman for the company said that they had been dealing with complaints on a “case by case” basis and that the contact with Watchdog had only been in recent weeks.

The BBC consumer programme bought a Cosatto Giggle pram and had it tested by child product safety expert John Trinci, who helps set Britain’s pram safety standards.

He said: “On some buggies the plastic may be too brittle causing it to break or snap, whereas on others it may be too soft causing the locking mechanism to disengage causing it to collapse.”

A spokesman for Cosatto, which is based in Bentinck Street in Farnworth, apologised to any customers who had experienced problems with the Giggle.

“We take any concerns regarding product safety and reliability very seriously indeed and work tirelessly to make sure all of our products deliver the highest standards,” he stated.

“This includes rigorous assessment and compliance testing above and beyond industry and statutory standards before they go on sale.”

He added: “Following the launch of the Giggle, we became aware of problems affecting the front mounting bracket on a small number of products from some of the first batches manufactured.

“In a small number of cases, this was causing the folding mechanism to fail.

“We stress that only a small number of products from these earlier batches was affected.

“The team is now contacting customers who bought a product from one of the affected batches and are offering to collect their chassis, carry out the important product enhancement, and return it to them free of charge with a three-day turnaround.”

Cosatto has also posted information on its website on how to easily identify the model affected and how to book this service as well as setting up a dedicated freephone helpline.

The website is www.cosatto.com/giggle and the helpline 08000 149 252.

Cosatto is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, although the family has been involved in the baby market for 30 years.

l In February this year, a design defect in the Cosatto Stratford cot bed was cited in the death of six month-old Ainslie Smith who suffocated at his home in Pitlessie in Fife in 2009.

A Scottish fatal accident inquiry found that the defect led to the baby’s “tragic, unnecessary” death.