Kids are clamoring for hoverboards, the cool-looking transport mode that combines the original Segway with the skateboard. Problem is, the huge demand is being met with irresponsible manufacturing practices that skip over safety concerns. Just this week malfunctioning hoverboards caused at least two fires in London, in one case leveling a house. More issues are being reported daily.
Hoverboards on the market today are prone to overheat and catch fire — or even explode — because of bad chargers, noncompliant plugs and other issues. Britain’s National Trading Standards Board, which has examined “more than 17,000 self-balancing scooters — or hoverboards,” says that over 15,000 or 88% are unsafe. Leon Livermore, CEO of Chartered Trading Standards Institute, urges that “consumers should not let a new fashion or craze cloud their judgement and remain vigilant at all times, to avoid taking home an unsafe product.” And billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban has been using his platform at Cyberdust to warn people about the hoverboard safety problems, saying “no way I’d buy these for my kids.” Cuban said the hoverboards — which he thinks should be called “horror boards,” are currently all made in China with “little to no quality controls for parts and circuits.”
Be careful with any board you buy. There are little to no quality controls for parts and circuits https://t.co/15w9jeydIl
— Mark Cuban (@mcuban) December 2, 2015
Another hoverboard blaze this time in #Kent. We’re warning about the charging dangers https://t.co/tV7g63snoC pic.twitter.com/war4rGmg5Y — London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) November 2, 2015
