No Hoverboards 'Officially Safe' Under New U.S. Government Standards

No hoverboards currently on the market are “officially” safe, according to new government standards, which were emphasized in a letter made public Friday by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The CPSC sent the letter to manufacturers, importers and retailers of self-balancing scooters — more commonly known as hoverboards (even though they don’t technically hover) — telling them to make sure that their products are in compliance with new UL standards.

UL spokesperson Brooke Higginbotham told Patch that no hoverboards have been certified as safe as of Friday evening under the new requirements, which cover the electric motors inside the devices and the rechargeable batteries that power them.

From December 1 to February February 17, the CPSC received reports of 52 hoverboard fires that have caused more than $2 million in property damage, killed two dogs and destroyed two homes and an automobile.

“We believe that many of the reported incidents, and the related unreasonable risk of injuries and deaths associated with fires in these products, would be prevented if all such products were manufactured in compliance with the referenced voluntary safety standards,” the letter says.

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UL is an independent science company that works with the CPSC to make sure products meet certain safety requirements before they are put out for sale.

“There is a dire need for the hoverboards to meet a safety standard,” CPSC spokesperson Patty Davis told Patch. “UL has come up with one, and we’re holding manufacturers, importers and retailers to that standard.”

And there are repercussions for hoverboard manufacturers that don’t meet those standards.

“Until they are able to certify it, they are subject to having their hoverboards seized at import, detained by CPSC and subject to recall in the U.S.,” Davis said.

• Read the letter from the CPSC here.

Images via Nashville Fire Department