The ease with which potentially harmful items may be sold on the internet was shown by covert research that was conducted on Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and TikTok Shop.
The results of a study conducted by Which? have shown that there are very few safeguards in place to prevent potentially hazardous items from being placed for sale on well-known internet marketplaces.
We found it all too simple to market an electric heater that seems similar to one that has been formally recalled by authorities owing to major safety issues and that we have previously reported to three of the platforms. This occurred when we went undercover as sellers on Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and TikTok Shop. To make matters even worse, once we complained and got this potentially harmful item removed from eBay and Etsy, we were able to quickly relist it on both platforms.
It is high time that adequate measures are put into place to prevent the sale of dangerous products and for platforms to be held accountable for potentially dangerous products that are putting consumers in danger. This comes as the new government has announced a Product Regulation and Metrology Bill, which has the potential to bring greater responsibility to online marketplaces.
The illicit item that we put up for sale on our website
The product that we put up for sale was a plug-in heater that seemed to be similar to one that had been recalled by the Office of Product and Safety Standards (OPSS) as long back as December 2022.
To what? As part of a prior examination earlier this year, eight devices that seemed to be similar were purchased and tested from eBay, Amazon, B&Q, and Wish.com. All of these models presented a danger of electric shock or fire. After we informed the platforms, they withdrew the potentially hazardous heaters from sale; nevertheless, shortly thereafter, ads for models that seemed to be similar to the ones that were deleted were re-posted.
We decided to pose as a vendor in order to investigate how simple it is to sell a heater that seems to be similar on several online marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and TikTok Shop.
eBay algorithms seem to emphasize selling over safety.
Our risky plug-in heater appeared similar to one offered on eBay and was identified as hazardous in the OPSS’s product safety assessment.
We acquired many unbranded models of this heater on eBay, all of which did not pass our safety evaluations. Upon reporting these illicit heaters to eBay, the platform removed them and said, “We collaborate with stakeholders and authorities, including Trading Standards, to maintain the safety of our site.” Listings reported by global authorities will be removed within two hours. In the course of our research, we saw no less than twelve advertisements for indistinguishable unbranded plug-in heaters.
Again, listing ours was straightforward. eBay even recommends a price based on comparable listings, implying that its algorithms are capable of detecting a product that seems to be identical to a recalled item.
Sellers are not obligated to give any product safety information. You have the option of including a product manufacturer’s contact information ‘in case a customer has product safety or compliance problems’ and ‘adding the [safety] warnings included in your item’s user manual or on the package’, but this is not required.
After our dangerous heater had been on sale for a month, we updated our eBay listing to add the barcode, product, and risk description from the OPSS’s product safety report, which states that the heater poses a severe risk of electric shock and does not comply with UK safety rules. The site only took action once we anonymously reported the heater, at which time it quickly withdrew our ad, seven weeks after we listed it for sale.
However, we were able to quickly relist the heater from the same seller account, and eBay waited two weeks to delete it.
Verdict: Failure—we were able to quickly list and relist our dangerous heater on eBay.
Amazon safety inspections were insufficient
Upon reporting the hazardous heater to Amazon last year, we received the response: ‘Safety is our first concern.’ Products must adhere to relevant rules and regulations, and we oversee safety issues.
Upon advertising a heater with comparable specifications, Amazon seems to implement more rigorous checks than its competitors, requiring sellers to provide a product ID, such as an EAN barcode, during the listing process. We lacked one since our heater was an unbranded, hazardous product, rendering it ineligible for listing. However, this was facilitated by Amazon’s unilateral provision of an exception, notwithstanding our lack of a formal request.
Shortly after we put our hazardous heater for sale, Amazon requested that we provide a Declaration of Conformity—a legal document affirming that a product adheres to all relevant safety requirements—or images of the CE mark and hazard warnings. Nevertheless, it provided us with two months to provide this proof of safety compliance, during which we may continue to offer our goods for sale.
Two weeks into our two-month grace period, Amazon discontinued the sale of our heater, citing ‘safety and/or non-compliance problems’ after recognizing it as a recalled item. We successfully relisted the illicit goods from the same seller account; this time, it was pulled from sale in little over a week. Notwithstanding stricter regulations, we successfully listed our hazardous heater for sale for almost three weeks.
Verdict: Partial credit—listing a hazardous product for sale remains too facile notwithstanding certain safety evaluations.
Etsy is no longer a platform only for handmade and antique items
Upon discovering a heater that closely resembled ours on Etsy last year and then reporting it, the site withdrew the item for contravening its handcrafted guideline. All items available for purchase on Etsy ‘must be handmade, vintage, or craft supplies’ as stipulated by its seller policy.
A brief examination of its website uncovers other products that do not fit the aforementioned categories, ranging from toothbrushes and washing-up bowls to heated clothes airers and electric heaters, including an ‘antique’ plug-in heater that seems similar to our hazardous one.
Listing our hazardous heater was very simple — it only took a few minutes to post the device on the website. Similar to eBay, Etsy did not recognize our hazardous listing, even after we revised it to include the same phrase from the OPSS’s product safety assessment.
After Etsy failed to delete our listing, we reported the item, which was subsequently barred the next day; nonetheless, we effortlessly relisted it from the same seller account. Our hazardous heater remained available for purchase until we presented our results on the platform. Ultimately, we managed to offer it for sale for more than 10 weeks.
Conclusion: Failure — Etsy failed to act until we reported these hazardous goods.
TikTok Shop: too simple to enumerate ‘limited items’
While Which? has not previously alerted TikTok over this specific heater, we have previously reported many hazardous electric heaters to the social media network and successfully got them removed.
TikTok classifies electrical appliances, such as heaters, as banned items. The seller requirements stipulate that it is obligatory to provide photographs of the goods displaying its UKCA/CE designation and any safety warnings. This proved to be optional, allowing us to post our questionable heater on TikTok Shop without providing a picture of a UKCA or CE label, which would have shown conformity with UK or European safety regulations.
After one month of availability, we included the OPSS’s product description and a caution on the substantial risk of electric shock related to the heater in our TikTok Shop listing. One week later, we reported the item from an alternative user’s account, although TikTok still did not remove this hazardous commodity from sale. It occurred only after we officially presented the findings of our study to the platform, roughly three months subsequent to our sale.
Verdict: Fail—TikTok was the only marketplace that did not respond when we anonymously reported this hazardous product.
Strategies to evade hazardous items in online marketplaces
In contrast to traditional brick-and-mortar or standard internet merchants, online marketplaces have no legal responsibility for the products offered via their platforms; hence, consumers must exercise heightened caution about their sellers, particularly when acquiring electrical goods.
- Avoid unfamiliar brands and unbranded items. Which one? Investigations have consistently shown that unbranded devices from online markets are harmful, including carbon monoxide detectors, smoke alarms, phone chargers, and electric heaters.
- Examine the vendor. Examine reviews of their other items and comments on platforms such as Trustpilot to see if other consumers had any problems. Be vigilant for fraudulent reviews – is there an unusually high quantity of five-star ratings?
- Exercise caution against forgeries and imitations. Investing a little more for tranquility is worthwhile. Note that CE/UK CA markings may be counterfeit.
The statements made by the platforms
We presented our results to eBay, Etsy, TikTok, and Amazon. eBay reiterated that ‘customer safety is one of our top concerns’ and said that it has deployed algorithms to avert the sale of hazardous goods, including picture recognition, continuous monitoring, and the use of AI to promptly remove identified risky items. It is dedicated to enhancing its methodology to guarantee the identification of banned listings.
Etsy said, ‘Ensuring user safety is of utmost importance, and Etsy forbids the sale of hazardous products on our platform, including those recalled by governmental or manufacturing authorities,’ adding that its Trust & Safety team diligently strives to eliminate items that contravene its regulations.
Subsequent to Which? Officially reporting the merchandise, TikTok confirmed its removal for contravening its regulations regarding electrical and electronic items. It said that no acquisitions were conducted, that it employs a blend of technology and human oversight to implement its regulations, and is always seeking methods to enhance its enforcement efforts.
Amazon said that ‘safety is a paramount concern for Amazon’ and that it mandates all items to adhere to relevant laws and regulations. Our inquiry revealed that ‘despite this being a counterfeit product intended to circumvent our regulations, it was identified and eliminated via our monitoring, and no consumers acquired the goods.’
