15,000 Hoverboards Seized As Unsafe In United Kingdom (nationaltradingstandards.uk)

puddingebola writes: National Trading Standards and trading standards services in Scotland have released figures that 15,000 of 17,000 hoverboards have been seized at ports of entry in the UK because of safety concerns. The boards were seized "due to a range of concerns, such as safety issues with the plug, cabling, charger, battery or the cut-off switch within the board, which often fails." Are we pushing hoverboard technology too far too quickly, or are there just a group of criminal sociopaths manufacturing unsafe devices at Christmastime and pumping them into the market? Mashable has a story summary with links to video of a man in Alabama with his hoverboard on fire. The government of New York City isn't so hot on hoverboards, either.

Comments

Not hoverboards

[ickleberry]

These are those silly two-wheeled "segway with no handle" contraptions that are all the fad this year. Bought in by the container load from the Pearl River Delta for half nothing and sold in shops for £499 a pop.

Re:Not hoverboards

[AmiMoJo]

They aren't being sold for 500 quid, they are being sold for half that direct to consumers on sites like Banggood, eBay and Deal Extreme.

Consumers directly importing unsafe goods is a growing problem. Drones, hoverboards, chargers, batteries... While European shops have to abide by common safety standards, you can basically import anything you like and most of the time it won't be checked. The only reason hoverboards are is that they cost enough to be charged duty and VAT on.

I wonder what will happen to all the consumers who bought these things. Most of these sellers make it clear that customs is your problem, and Trading Standards won't pay to return them. The best option is probably to claim on your credit card under section 75, unless you paid by PayPal in which case you are likely screwed.

Re:Not hoverboards

[Jahoda]

While I am not surprised that clearly- unbiased source, "reason.com" calls this an example of runaway nanny-state regulation, the fact remains that millions use the sidewalks of NYC every single day, and those people have the right to safety.

Digging a bit deeper into the question of their legality, we find this article from the NY Daile News

It appears that these motorized electric scooters - which I've personally only recently become aware of, and until reading this article had no idea they were becoming so popular, essentially fall under a broad "motorized transport" classification.

I guess that it is easy to paint a picture of "big government wants its pound of flesh" surrounding their registration. However, the interpretation I take is that any tom, dick, or harry can't just go driving a motor-propelled vehicle on the streets and sidewalks of NYC. In fact, the whole topic of this thread is that 15,000 of these things are siezed in the UK for being unsafe. Are the scooters being sold on the streets of NYC coming from a different chinese factory? Is there any less of a problem of bootleg, unsafe goods?

I'm sorry, but I'f I'm walking down the streets of brooklyn or wherever, I don't want someone slamming into me on their unsafe, unregulated, apparently-on-flames motorized fad-scooter.

But you're right, government only exists to regulate, regulate, regulate. It's all just rules and red tape, isn't it?

Re:Wait, what?

[rodrigoandrade]

2015, obviously.

Unsafe unbranded clones prone to combustion

[RogueyWon]

The BBC article on this subject makes clear that these are cheap, unbranded Chinese and East Asian knock-offs with a documented history demonstrating that they (and specifically their chargers) are a fire risk. That BBC piece really should have been TFA.

There are some oddities around these "hoverboards", in the UK, though. Specifically, it's illegal to operate one on either a public road or a pavement, meaning that they are legal only for use on private land. Technically, I think, the same is true of Segways.

Re:Unsafe unbranded clones prone to combustion

[JBMcB]

They aren't really "Knock-Offs," there really isn't an official manufacturer of "Hoverboards."

http://www.npr.org/sections/mo...

Re:Wait, what?

[Anonymous Coward]

2015, the year they went to in Back to the Future 2.

However, being this is reality, it should come as no shock that "hoverboard" is a marketing gimmick for shitty electric skateboards. The Daily Show covered this well.

Learning that not only are they shitty electric skateboards but they're also poorly made, dangerous shitty electric skateboards comes as no shock.

I wish they wouldnt call those things hoverboards

[JustNiz]

they clearly DONT hover.

Re:Hoverboards and universal health care

[Malc]

What about universal fire fighting service? Which is probably more relevant, since the BBC article references two fires in two weeks in London due to these devices.

Three fires in London over ten days in October:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/busi...

Re:Wait, what?

[TWX]

Learning that not only are they shitty electric skateboards but they're also poorly made, dangerous shitty electric skateboards comes as no shock.

That depends on the failure mode...

Obligatory dirty Hungarian phrasebook reference

[GbrDead]

My hoverboard is full of eels.

Re:Not knockoffs

[raburton]

UK is the only place I know of where appliances are sold without power cords.

Really? I live in the UK and regularly buy appliances of various kinds and they have always come with a power cord, so this is news to me. I can just about remember a time when it was standard for devices to come without a plug and you were expected to wire your own on (presumably a hang over from the change in plug types and the fact that older ones were still in common usage for a while), but it's been a requirement for them to come with plugs for probably 20+ years.

Happy Fun Board

[T.E.D.]

You can kinda see their concern, if you read the disclaimer on its own marketing material:

Yes, it's Happy Fun Board! The toy sensation that's sweeping the nation! Only 14.95 at participating stores! Get one today!

Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly, and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Happy Fun Board.

Caution: Happy Fun Board may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds.

Happy Fun Board contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.

Do not use Happy Fun Board on concrete.

Discontinue use of Happy Fun Board if any of the following occurs:

• itching
• vertigo
• dizziness
• tingling in extremities
• loss of balance or coordination
• slurred speech
• temporary blindness
• profuse sweating
• or heart palpitations

• If Happy Fun Board begins to smoke, get away immediately. Seek shelter and cover head.

  Happy Fun Board may stick to certain types of skin.

  When not in use, Happy Fun Board should be returned to its special container and kept under refrigeration. Failure to do so relieves the makers of Happy Fun Board, Wacky Products Incorporated, and its parent company, Global Chemical Unlimited, of any and all liability.

  Ingredients of Happy Fun Board include an unknown glowing green substance which fell to Earth, presumably from outer space.

  Happy Fun Board has been shipped to our troops in Saudi Arabia and is being dropped by our warplanes on Iraq.

  Do not taunt Happy Fun Board.

  Happy Fun Board comes with a lifetime warranty.

  Happy Fun Board! Accept no substitutes!