In the digital age, online shopping is hugely popular, offering convenience, variety, and often, competitive prices. The 2023 festive period was one of the busiest e-retail periods in history with most people buying at least one online product in the run-up to Christmas.
However, as consumers increasingly turn to online marketplaces, a series of risks have emerged, ranging from exploding batteries to dangerous toys that can cause serious harm.
This article looks at some of the hazards lurking in the virtual aisles and explores the legal void that leaves consumers vulnerable.
Electrical Goods: A Loophole in the Law
With the wide range of online marketplaces available, there’s always a risk that purchased goods don’t come to the required standard. In some countries, this danger is higher than others.
Mainland Britain, for example, is vulnerable to the influx of unsafe products thanks to loopholes in commercial law since leaving the European Union. One politician described the situation as the country becoming a “Wild West” where unsuspecting consumers are peddled hazardous goods.
Much of what we see online is safeguarded by regulations. International gambling regulations mean that offers you might see on a UK no deposit bonus 2024 list are normally from licensed casinos, and your banking app, too, must comply with financial law. Yet, some of the stuff you buy on an online marketplace may fall short of consumer goods law.
Electrical goods are the main area of concern. In recent months, there have been incidents such as the explosion of a replacement laptop charger bought from a third-party seller on Amazon, and the melting of a scooter lithium battery which led to a small fire. Shockingly, such incidents are occurring in the UK at a rate of at least six per week, often traced back to faulty batteries and chargers acquired through online platforms.
Counterfeit items, often traced back to overseas manufacturers, further compound the problem, with fake Nutribullet juicers, for example, posing serious fire risks.
Breeding ground
Children’s safety is also compromised as online marketplaces become a breeding ground for unsafe toys. In 2022, research by The British Toy and Hobby Association (BTHA) revealed that a staggering 90% of toyspurchased from third-party sellers via online platforms were deemed unsafe.
One example was a misleadingly small wooden stacking tower from the Alibaba website that a child almost choked on. Magnets and button batteries, when found loose in toys sold online, also pose a significant danger if swallowed.
Instances of children requiring hospitalization due to ingestion of small, hazardous parts are on the rise. The lack of stringent regulation and oversight in online marketplaces allows unsafe toys, such as plushies containing toxic levels of phthalate, to reach unsuspecting consumers.
Legal Void and Consumer Responsibility
Despite all the bad news, online marketplaces still have numerous advantages, including access to numerous sellers, competitive prices, and swift deliveries.
However, the absence of robust safety checks, are not always apparent to consumers. Unlike traditional retail transactions, the responsibility for verifying the safety of goods often shifts to the consumer when dealing with third-party sellers on online platforms.
Remarkably, third-party platforms have no legal obligation to assess the safety of products sold on their sites, even if they store and deliver items on behalf of sellers. This legal gap, coupled with the rapid evolution of shopping habits, has turned consumers into de facto importers, left to face dangers without adequate safeguards.
The Global Supply Chain Challenge
A significant challenge in addressing these issues lies in the global nature of the supply chain. Third-party sellers and manufacturers, predominantly based in China and the Middle East, operate with varying levels of awareness about safety regulations in the countries to which they export.
Some may lack knowledge about safety standards, while others exploit the system, contributing to the Wild West scenario in online commerce.
The likes of Amazon and eBay typically offer refunds when customers report faulty items, pledging to remove dangerous products from sale. Yet, despite this, third-party sellers frequently relist unsafe items, contributing to a problematic “whack-a-mole” approach.
In 2022, the BTHA flagged 101 unsafe toys, only to discover 65 seemingly identical items still on sale a few months later, some listed by the same seller on the same marketplace.
Consumer protection organizations, including Which? and Electrical Safety First (ESF), stress the need to prevent these items from entering the market in the first place. The current system, relying on consumers to identify and report unsafe products, falls short of adequately protecting the public from the risks associated with online shopping.
The way forward
Trade bodies and regulatory agencies have both called for shift in the legal framework to compel online platforms to more closely check the safety of goods sold by third-party sellers. They believe consumers should not be responsible for product safety assessments.
Online platforms possess the technical and commercial capabilities to hold suppliers accountable. Amazon, recognized for its responsible approach, has the power to ensure product safety. Yet, legislative changes are the only way to make them proactively screen and verify the safety of items.
Consumer vigilance: what we can do to stay safe
When purchasing potentially risky items, such as electrical goods and toys, we should always check for a CE mark, indicating compliance with EU safety standards.
Consumers should also scrutinize packaging quality and instructions, ensuring the voltage of products aligns with safety standards.
Prices that seem too good to be true often indicate counterfeit goods. Checking seller and customer reviews, especially one-star reviews highlighting issues, gives us the best idea of the safety and reliability of products.
Until reform takes place, these are the measures that all of us can take to protect ourselves from the dangers of faulty goods in today’s market.
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