500K+ hoverboard recall: CPSC chairman Elliot Kaye calls for consumers to stop using dangerous hoverboards
More than 500,000 self-balancing scooters, better known as hoverboards, have been recalled by 10 different companies upon the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)’s discovery the products fail to meet the Underwriters Laboratories (UL)’s electrical safety requirements.
Hoverboards can be identified by their unique design aspects, including two wheels, one at either end of its platform, and are powered by lithium-ion battery packs. The following chart details the retailers, brands and amount of hoverboards affected by the massive hoverboard recall:
Manufacturer/Importers:
| Company | Number of Units | Brand/ModelSold |
| Digital Gadgets LLC, of Monroe, N.J. | 16,000 | Hover-Way/Model # HWSBB601-R |
| Hoverboard LLC, of Scottsdale, Ariz. | 70,000 | Powerboard |
| Hype Wireless, of Edison, N.J. |
25,000 | Hype Roam |
| Keenford Ltd., of Lynbrook, N.Y. | 84,000 | iMoto |
| PTX Performance Products USA of Irvine, CA | 4,900 | Airwalk Self Balancing Electric Scooter |
| Razor USA LLC, of Cerritos, Calif. | 28,000 | Hovertrax |
| Swagway LLC, of South Bend, Ind. | 267,000 | Swagway X1 |
| Yuka Clothing, of Miami, Fla. | 800 | Wheeli, 2Wheelz, Back to the Future, Mobile Tech, Hover Shark, NWS, X Glider and X Rider |
Retail Stores:
| Boscov’s, of Reading, Pa. | 1,300 | Orbit |
Online Retailers:
| Overstock.com, of Salt Lake City, Utah | 4,300 | All hoverboards sold on Overstock.com |
Before the hoverboard recall was announced, the CPSC and the 10 companies listed were made aware of at least 99 incidents involving the lithium-ion battery packs overheating, sparking, smoking, catching fire and even exploding. Some of the reports detailed severe burn injuries, as well as property damage. The total amount of injuries and property damage done by the recalled hoverboards is currently unknown.
“Homes and apartments have been destroyed because of fires related to hazardous hoverboards,” CPSC chairman Elliot Kaye said in a recent statement regarding the monumental hoverboard recall. “CPSC has investigated more than 60 hoverboard fires in more than 20 states that resulted in more than $2 million in property damage. To prevent another fire and possibly a death, I am urging consumers who have a recalled hoverboard to take advantage of this recall.”
From June 2015 through May 2016, the recalled hoverboards were sold by the abovementioned companies for between $350 and $900, depending on the model and manufacturer. All of the recalled hoverboards were manufactured in China.
All consumers in possession of one or more of the recalled hoverboards should contact the companies through their corresponding websites and call centers.
“Hoverboards that are not certified by Underwriters Laboratories are extremely dangerous and are a fire hazard waiting to happen,” chairman Kaye continued in his hoverboard recall statement. “My message to the public was clear in February and continues to be clear today: Do not use a hoverboard that does not meet UL’s electrical safety requirements for these products (UL 2272).”