Hoverboard Safety Alert

By Floyd Arthur

All across the United States, hoverboards were the go-to holiday

gift this year. The

self-propelled, self-balancing scooters literally flew off the store

shelves at big box

retailers like Walmart and Target, and were one of the biggest sellers

on

Amazon.com. Then, less than two weeks before Christmas, the U.S.

Consumer

Product Safety Commission issued a statement warning consumers that

many of the

hoverboards being sold in the U.S. were unsafe.

Hoverboard Safety

The issues with the scooters were not minor. In addition to hundreds of

reports from

emergency rooms across the nation of serious injuries due to falls, the

CPSC received

dozens of complaints from consumers that the devices were

exploding and catching

fire.

The problem stems from the devices’ lithium-ion batteries, which have a

well-

documented tendency to explode. In 2005 and 2006, millions of Sony-

made lithium-

ion batteries in laptop computers were recalled when several hundred

of them caught

fire. Last year, the electric car manufacturer Tesla was forced to do

a remote software

upgrade on thousands of its model S luxury cars when several of the cars’

batteries

caught fire. And in 2014, Boeing briefly grounded its entire fleet of

787 Dreamliners

after batteries on two of the planes blew up.

Amazon Temporarily Halts Hoverboard

Sales

In the wake of the CSPC statement, on Dec. 14, 2015, Amazon.com made

the

unprecedented decision to halt all sales of hoverbooards on its site and

offered

customers a full refund on any hoverboard purchase they had

made. The online

retailer even went so far as to urge customers to throw away the boards

rather than

return them to the company.

Several days later, Amazon.com resumed sales of the Indiana-based

Swagway scooters

after the manufacturer submitted safety data and documentation from

its legal team.

However, it continues to warn customers that all other hoverboard

brands, including

the popular scooter made by RioRand, are unsafe.

All major U.S. airlines and many international carriers have since

banned

hoverboards on all aircraft both in the passenger cabin and cargo hold.

CPSC Hoverboard Guidelines

On Dec. 16, 2015, CPSC Chairman Elliot F. Kaye issued a statement to

the public

regarding the hazards of hoverboards and outlined precautions regarding

their

purchase and sale. These included:

* Buy only from reputable retailers. Avoid buying a hoverboard at a mall

kiosk, or

online from an unknown or unreliable source. “If you do not

think you could find the

seller again... that should be a warning to you not to do business

with them,” said

Kaye.

* Do not charge a hoverboard overnight or in a location where it is

close to anything

that can catch fire.

* Do not charge a hoverboard immediately after riding it. Allow it

to cool for at least 60

minutes before charging.

* Check the hoverboard for the Underwriter's Laboratory (UL) label.

If it isn’t there,

return the product to the seller. **

* Do not ride the hoverboard in the street or on a busy sidewalk.

* Wear a helmet and safety gear, including wrist, knee and elbow pads

when riding

the scooter.

Mr. Kaye also urged the U.S. to adopt safety standards for hoverboard use.

**According to U.S. Customs Enforcement and Protection,

thousands of products

with counterfeit UL labels are smuggled into the U.S. each year, so

the presence of a

label is not a safety guarantee.

While it’s natural to be curious about new technologies, safety should

always be our

major concern. And helping you keep your family safe and protected is

what we do

best. Our trained agents are expert in all types of insurance for your home

and your

business, so let us help you design a comprehensive program that meets

your needs.

Call us at 516-292-3780 any weekday between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. Or, if you

prefer, request a free consultation online now.

Visit www.CarmoonGroup.com