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Amazon is currently only selling one brand of hoverboard in the UK right now.
Hoverboard maker Swagway claims the retail giant has sent out a notice to all relevant manufacturers after a warning from the London Fire Brigade LFB).
Back in October, LFB reported that one board caught fire while on charge in a bedroom in Southwark. Another device ‘exploded’ in Morden earlier in the month.
"The cause of both fires is still under investigation whilst the devices are tested at our lab,” said Charlie Pugsley of the LFB. "We’d urge people to keep an eye on their devices whilst they are on charge."
Amazon has now taken down a number of hoverboards while it asks firms to verify the safety of their products.
Swagway said the etailer sent out a notice to all of those selling hoverboards asking them to ‘provide documentation demonstrating that all hoverboards you list are compliant with applicable safety standards, including UN 38.3 (battery), UL 1642 (battery), and UL 60950-1 (charger).’ The firm said it is already meets the standards and has informed Amazon.
"As safety is on the forefront for Swagway, we applaud Amazon for taking these steps to weed out the low quality boards and want to note that this removal is not specific to Swagway, but includes 97 per cent of the other branded hoverboards that were also selling on their site,” said the firm.
At the time of writing, a search on Amazon.co.uk shows plenty of hoverboard accessories but only one actual hoverboard brand available to buy – a manufacturer called PEDA.
In October, the UK banned the use of hoverboards in public. But rather than discouraging consumers, many retailers reported a boost in sales. Read more about the hoverboard ban that here.
