Hoverboards are one of the most sought after items this holiday season, with eBay, Inc. reporting it sold nearly 7,500 units — or one every 12 seconds — during Cyber Monday. Unfortunately, the high demand has resulted in the production of a lot knockoffs, which sometimes prove to less safe compared to the originals.

Recently, there has been a spike in the news regarding hoverboards exploding or going up in flames while being charged. In fact, the U.K. has issued a warning for consumers who are intending to buy these hoverboards online, as a result of the country’s National Trading Standards Safety at Ports & Borders teams seizing unsafe hoverboards at the East Midlands Airport.

According to the National Trading Standards Safety, consumers must be vigilant in purchasing hoverboards online. And, the organization offered a few critical tips for consumers to follow if they want to buy a hoverboard online.

Now, Amazon.com has taken these exploding hoverboards seriously and pulled out some of these devices from its sites. It is even requesting companies making these personal transportation devices prove that their products are safe to use before being let back in the online store.

Safety tips when purchasing online

Check the device

The unsafe hoverboards have been identified to be using a clover-shaped plug. The device itself should have markings or traceable information, such as name and contact details of the manufacturer and/or importer. It also would not hurt to read the fine print. If anything seems odd, like repetitive or incorrect English in the product description, then the product might not be made from high-quality materials.

Check the seller/distributor

If buying online, scrutinize the website to make sure it is a legitimate one, and if possible, try to get in contact with the support team via email or landline to see if its help team responds quickly — in case problems are encountered later on. Also, if there are many misspelled words or incorrect grammar on the website, it could be a sign that the business is not professionally run, so it would be wise to look for another hoverboard.

Check the reviews

Another way to check the legitimacy of the product or seller is to check their online reviews. If everything seems to be too peachy, be suspicious of possible fake reviews posted by the seller or friends of the seller.

Check the price

If it’s too cheap, as in unbelievably low prices, the device may be poorly made. Expect the device to break quickly or, worse, explode or burst into flames.

Check the warranty

Never purchase a device without a warranty.

Charging safety tips

Fire marshals have also weighed in on these personal vehicles and gave tips on how to prevent these devices from exploding or bursting into flames.

• After using, allow the device to cool off before charging it.
• Never leave the charging device unattended, and never leave it charging overnight.
• Do not overcharge the device; follow the manufacturer’s recommended charging times.
• Only use chargers that come with the device, and never use imitation electrical chargers.
• Make sure to plug the hoverboard into a socket that has nothing else plugged in.

If you’re still concerned about the safety of hoverboards, you could always go for a wave board. It somewhat resembles a hoverboard, but it doesn’t need to be charged, plus wave boards are usually much less expensive than a hoverboard.

Image source: Razor