Hoverboard batteries blamed for burning down another house

The blaze prompted the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advisory to recall seven hoverboard brands

November 15, 2017 09:05 AM

By David J. Neal
Miami Herald

MANCHESTER TWP., Pa. — A second house-destroying fire prompted Tuesday’s U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission advisory against using one brand of hoverboard, while seven other brands were recalled.

Among the seven was Drone Nerds, sold only online or in its Aventura store.

The problem with the recalled hoverboards, as stated in each recall notice: “The lithium-ion battery packs in the self-balancing scooters/hoverboards can overheat, posing a risk of the products smoking, catching fire and/or exploding.”

While that problem has flared up with some of the recalled hoverboards, none report the kind of damage blamed on LayZ Board hoverboards. That’s the brand singled out for the CPSC’s stay-away recommendation Tuesday after an Oct. 23 Manchester Township, Pennsylvania, house fire that the CPSC says destroyed one townhouse and damaged four others.

Nobody died, unlike the March 10, 2017, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, house fire that killed two girls, a 10-year-old and a 2-year-old. A Harrisburg firefighter died when his car was crashed into on the way to the fire. After that conflagration started by a recharging LayZ Board hoverboard, the CPSC issued an advisory that consumers should stop using the hoverboards. LayZ Board imported about 3,000 from China.

A CPSC spokeswoman said all the recalled hoverboards fell short of UL 2272, the Underwriters Laboratories parameters that the UL website says “evaluates the safety of the electrical drive train system and battery and charger system combinations of hoverboards and other 1-wheel, 2-wheel, x-wheel (which includes hoverboards).”

They recalled:

Drone Nerds recalled approximately 700 hoverboards sold at its Aventura store, 20614 Biscayne Blvd., or on dronenerds.com from November 2015 through March 2016. Consumers should return their hoverboards to the store for a refund or store credit. Customers can call 888-785-7543 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday, or email at hbrecall@gmail.com.
DPI recalled about 8,700 iLive hoverboards sold at Ace Hardware, hh gregg stores and websites and in Heartland America catalogs from April 2016 through March 2017. DPI received one report of an overheating and smoking battery pack. For a free replacement hoverboard, customers should call the company at 800-311-9263, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.
Dollar Mania recalled approximately 1,000 Sonic Smart Wheels hoverboards sold at Dollar Mania stores in Boissier City and Shreveport, Louisiana, from August 2015 through December 2016. Dollar Mania did get a report of one fire “resulting in approximately $40,000 of property damage to a consumer’s home.” To get a free replacement hoverboard, customers should call Dollar Mania at 844-333-4457 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central time, Monday through Friday, or go to the company’s Facebook page.
Four Star Imports recalled about 1,800 Go Wheels hoverboards sold only at Village Mart from October 2015 through March 2016. Four Star has gotten one report of a board overheating. For a free replacement, customers should call Four Star at 800-780-5231 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central time.
Salvage World recalled about 700 Smart Balance hoverboards sold at Salvage World stores in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, from October 2015 through March 2016. Salvage World has gotten one report of a battery pack catching fire and/or exploding resulting in property damage. Salvage World isn’t offering an exchange, but rather a store credit. To arrange this, customers should call Salvage World at 888-726-9603 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central time.
Simplified Wireless recalled about 900 iHoverspeed hoverboards sold online through various sites in November and December, 2015. To arrange and exchange for a replacement hoverboards, customers can call at 833-220-1212 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday, or email simplifiedrecall@gmail.com.
Tech Drift recalled about 100 hoverboards sold online at techdrift.com and amazon.com from December 2015 through April 2016. For a free replacement, customers should call Tech Drift at 800-491-0264 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific time, Monday through Friday, or email techdriftmyk@gmail.com.