U.S. and Chinese product safety officials are joining forces to address concerns about the hazards of the hoverboard. (Photo : Twitter)
China and the United States are teaming up to ensure that the popular but notoriously unsafe hoverboard toy follows stricter safety regulations.
According to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairman Elliot Kyle, the Chinese product safety agency responded positively to his office's concerns over reports that some of the lithium-ion batteries used in certain hoverboards are prone to catching fire.
Kyle also thanked the agency for helping track down the companies that manufacture the products in question, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The chairman, who was in China to talk with officials about product safety, said that his office has learned a lot in the last few months since they have blocked the sale of the controversial gadget, particularly in the need to provide better product development information.
He said that hoverboards were an example of a new product that caught safety officials off-guard with a set of hazards that were not previously expected.
Kyle added that the sudden increase in the toy's popularity made it more difficult to effectively put down adequate safety nets.
The chairman said that when the toy became very popular in 2015, safety concerns were placed more on incidents of riders falling from it due to improperly calibrated electrical systems. With reports of hoverboards catching fire emerging, users ended up facing another danger alongside the original concern.
Kyle said that his office, along with the Chinese quality supervision administration and the European commission for product safety, is hoping for online shopping sites to also push for stricter safety standards before putting hoverboards on sale on their pages.
Amazon has reportedly taken the lead in this regard, with the online retail giant taking hoverboards off its listings while awaiting more safety certifications from manufacturers, the Albany Daily Star reported.
However, customers can still purchase models made by Razor and Jetson, as these already have the needed certifications.
