Hoverboards Unsafe, Declares US Government

It looks like hoverboards are no longer in vogue, as the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has deemed that not a single hoverboard can be deemed safe after spending months looking into the safety hazards that such devices possess. CPSC has already sent out an official notice to retailers, manufacturers and importers that cited new hoverboard safety standards. Should these new safety standards be compromised, then expect enforcement actions to follow – which include the seizure of the devices, in addition to civil and criminal penalties.

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#hoverboards Makers, importers and retailers put on notice https://t.co/UEvHCBxSf5 pic.twitter.com/jfG9kIiovC

— U.S. CPSC (@USCPSC) February 19, 2016

In other words, hoverboard manufacturers and sellers should remove hoverboards from the market voluntarily until UL can certify them as safe. UL is the independent testing firm widely used by U.S. electronics manufacturers, and so far, UL has not deemed any of the hoverboards as safe. Amazon themselves already stopped selling hoverboards last year before asking their customers to discard any hoverboards purchased, not to mention offering a refund for all hoverboards sold.

Hoverboards have been known to explode and pose as a fire hazard, and with the banning of them in NSW and Australia, this particular move does not come across as a surprise. In fact, a Chinese hoverboard booth was raided at CES early last month to add to the overall drama, so best of all is, cross the hoverboard off your list of Christmas gifts for the year.

CPSC hoverboard letter

Edwin Kee
Categories: Gadgets
Tags: hoverboard