eScooters and hoverboards may not be as safe as they should be!
Over recent years, our Engineers at Comtest, have tested thousands of battery powered products that fail to meet Australian Regulatory Compliance Requirements.
Many of these products in question are E-scooters, hoverboards, laptops, hand tools, basically any battery powered product. Many of these products and devices are of inferior quality and are now being produced and sold in extraordinary volumes.
A quick browse on the internet or a visit to the local shopping centre reveals a plethora of unmarked and potentially unsafe products and these products are easily available to the consumer.
Quality issues, incompatibility of components and potential for user misuse means these products are dangerous and have been known to catch fire. Please view this online footage to see another E-scooter battery fire tearing through a house – Another e-scooter battery fire tears through house | Watch.
Another concern is when these products catch fire they cannot be extinguished because the fire is as a result of a chemical reaction.
At Comtest, our Engineers test products for:
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Battery discharge rates
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Compatibility/Suitability of components
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Temperature measurements/Charging
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Flammability
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Short circuit testing
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Battery charging (circuit fault tests)
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Over charging tests
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Impact testing
We also, audit documentation to ensure that the product has been tested to the correct Standards and assist with ensuring any registration or compliance requirements are covered off.
Equally concerning is the amount of untested unsafe products being offered online to the uneducated unsuspecting public. Recently we made contact via phone with an EESS representative in Queensland to discuss this matter and was told in no uncertain terms that their position for when consumer’s are purchasing products online is ‘Buyer beware’.
At Comtest we have witnessed a number of factors that we believe have contributed to these dangers:
(1) The lack of surveillance, enforcement, stakeholder consultation and education by Regulators and Customs.
(2) The largely unregulated supply and purchasing of electrical/battery products from online platforms or uneducated and/or unscrupulous suppliers locally and overseas.
(3) Confusion in the marketplace with regards to the Australian Regulatory Compliance Requirements, RCM and other regulatory marks. Alarmingly, the belief amongst many suppliers that the CE mark means the product can be sold in Australia without any testing.
(4) The false perception that battery powered products are of little safety concern and don’t require testing. This belief is not only from consumers, but from many suppliers, manufacturers and retailers.
Watch ABC Report here about the danger of Lithium Batteries
Comtest Group and Comtest Laboratories have worked with the ACCC and other Regulators providing input and testing services. If you are unsure of what to do or if the requirements are relevant to your products, we can assistant you to ensure that your products are compliant.
Please contact us on 03 9645 5933 or email comtest@comtest.com.au for a fully confidential chat.