PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — One of this year’s most popular gifts is once again in the hot seat as a federal agency investigates how safe they are.
The head of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) says consumers want and deserve answers about the safety of hoverboards. With numerous reports of fires and injuries recently, consumers need to know whether the product they purchased is safe.
CPSC Chairman Elliot F. Kaye has directed his agency to work “non-stop” to find the root cause of the fire hazard and determine how much of a risk it might present to users. The agency has purchased new hoverboards and taken possession of others that have caught fire and engineers are now testing them.
While the fire hazard has generated significant attention, the CPSC also did not want to downplay the fall hazard. The agency has received dozens of reports from emergency rooms of serious injuries including concussions, fractures, cuts and internal organ injuries.
Currently, there are no safety hazards in place for hoverboards.
