Dozens of Amazon's own products have been reported as dangerous -- melting, exploding or even bursting into flames. Many are still on the market

[RV_]

CNN Business posted a list of dangerous Amazon Basics items that have exploded, caught fire, or posed electrocution risks. I have two of the shredders on the list and II have about 15 of the Amazon Basic rechargeable AAA batteries. Now the shredders, which are next to outlets, are unplugged until use, no inconvenience as we use them once or twice a week, usually less.

For rechargeable AAs I use POWEREX 2700 MaH and IMEDION 2400mAh NiMH pee charged that hold 80% of their charge for a year or more.

Excerpt:

"Dozens of Amazon's own products have been reported as dangerous -- melting, exploding or even bursting into flames. Many are still on the market.

When firefighters arrived at Austin Parra's home on January 12, 2017, they could see smoke and the charred remnants of an office chair outside.

Parra, then 20, had been transported to the hospital. His mother explained to firefighters that her son's chair caught on fire while he was sleeping, and he was burned as he carried the flaming chair outside.

Anthony Dignoti, the Wethersfield, Connecticut, fire marshal in charge of investigating the incident, could see that the door and door frame were damaged by the fire as well. He noticed bowls strewn about, which he wrote in his official report had been filled with water in an attempt to extinguish the fire."

Much more in the article including a list of the bad products with links to their Amazon pages so you can check if any of yours are bad. It's here: https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/10/business/amazonbasics-electronics-fire-safety-invs/index.html?tag=reviewgeek-20

 

 

Edited September 13, 2020 by RV_

[lappir]

I have never and NEVER will make a purchase from Amazon. 

 

Rod

[Ray,IN]

The link at page bottom seems to be broken Derek, or did I  miss a step?

[markandkim]

Who watches or even believes CNN?

[Kirk W]

11 hours ago, lappir said:

I have never and NEVER will make a purchase from Amazon. 

I have made many purchases from Amazon and continue to do so. Shopping Amazon is a lot like using a GPS. You need to be capable of using logic to determine if you are being guided in the right direction. If we were to close every retail outlet that ever sold a product that was unsafe, there would be few if any such markets left. 

[docj]

With all due respect, I don't mean to downplay the potential threat of fire from a defective product, but IMHO the linked article is nothing but "click bait" journalism.  I have no doubt that the discussed fires did occur, but the article lacks any reference to the absolute number of such problem or, more importantly, the defect rate as a percentage of items sold. 

I'm not condoning what may be Amazon's failure to recall the items mentioned, but until I learn more about the failure rate I wouldn't accuse the company of improper actions. Virtually everything has a defect and/or failure rate; what really matters is what is that rate and what are the consequences of failure.  Recalls are required when a single item poses a risk at a rate high enough to trigger action. 

The problem with this article IMO is that it lumps failures of different, unrelated items into a collective fabric to make the situation seem more serious than it may be. There's nothing in common between the failure of USB charger and a powerstrip except that they both have the Amazon brand name.  But it makes for good copy to be able to boldly write "Amazon products are defective!"  That's why I class this article as "click bait".

And, yes, I spend hundreds of dollars a month at Amazon.  During this pandemic, in particular, Amazon has made our lives much easier.

Edited September 13, 2020 by docj

[Barbaraok]

Since Amazon doesn't manufacture one single item, I'm not sure why Derek is up in arms about this.   Last I saw, Amazon, like Walmart, Target, etc., will buy enough of one item from one manufacturer to get a "branding" all their own.   I am quite sure that those same products are sold under a variety of names/brands in stores all over the country.   That's what the Consumer Protection Agency does, monitors, assembles information/data and then will make recalls that will be widely publicized.   I agree with Joel,  this was a 'click-bait' article.      Given the number of items that Amazon is the middleman on,  of course some of those that are defective will have been purchased through Amazon either as their own 'brand' or sold by Amazon.    I would hate to think what the past 6 months would have been like without the ability to have items shipped to us.   Could I have tracked down each and every business that produces something we have purchased the past 6 months, probably.   But it would be a lot of more time spent trying to find those little companies that have benefited by being on the Amazon site.   I'm thinking of the non-sodium, non-potassium baking soda and baking powder that allow Dave to enjoy pancakes, muffins, all sorts of baked quck breads again.   

[Kirk W]

58 minutes ago, docj said:

With all due respect, I don't mean to downplay the potential threat of fire from a defective product, but IMHO the linked article is nothing but "click bait" journalism. 

Very well put! Sensational journalism seems to have great popularity!

1 hour ago, docj said:

I spend hundreds of dollars a month at Amazon.  During this pandemic, in particular, Amazon has made our lives much easier.

Amazon has been a vital lifeline in our gated senior community. 

[bigjim]

I didn't read it as Derek being up in arms as much as just making people aware so they can do their own do diligence and make their own decision.

 

🤑 Holy mackeral doc what do you do with all that stuff?  My Rv is already overflowing. If it makes you happy you should do it but I am in awe.

[Pieere]

1 hour ago, bigjim said:

I didn't read it as Derek being up in arms as much as just making people aware so they can do their own do diligence and make their own decision.

 

Pieerer!

I agreed! Just some products always have problems! Had a Tablet that burst in flame and it was shut off! Had a cheap TV that quit after the 1 year quit the day after the guarantee was over!  Pieere

 

Quote

 

🤑 Holy mackeral doc what do you do with all that stuff?  My Rv is already overflowing. If it makes you happy you should do it but I am in awe.

 

Edited September 13, 2020 by Pieere

[Sehc]

Wow. The circuit did not trip breaker? 5 volt cord caused a fire in one chair. Therefore all amazon products should be avoided. I can think of better reasons to avoid Amazon. 

[2gypsies]

I didn't realize Amazon was a manufacturer.

[lappir]

5 hours ago, Kirk W said:

I have made many purchases from Amazon and continue to do so. Shopping Amazon is a lot like using a GPS. You need to be capable of using logic to determine if you are being guided in the right direction. If we were to close every retail outlet that ever sold a product that was unsafe, there would be few if any such markets left. 

If you continue to support mostly Amazon there will be few if any "Market's" left. Buy local, buy from a small business and not the big box stores before all the "Family" businesses are no longer. The easier you make your life the less you will be able to do in the future. It's great fun to Joke about writing in cursive and leaving the keys in a car with a manual transmission, but the reality is we older people are the reason the younger ones don't know nothing and it's only going to get worse. It's easier to just do it my self instead of trying to teach that yahoo how to change a dam tire. Better yet, sign them up for AAA so I don't have to get out of bed after the football game when a friend pulled a prank and let the air out of the tires. 

Amazon is not saving your life. It's taking it away from you. 

Survival of the fittest. 

Only the good die young. 

No pain no gain. 

How many more do you want? 

Rodney Lappin RN

[bigjim]

2 hours ago, Pieere said:

I agreed! Just some products always have problems! Had a Tablet that burst in flame and it was shut off! Had a cheap TV that quit after the 1 year quit the day after the guarantee was over!  Pieere

Are you sure your name isn't really Jim. That frequently seems to be what happens to me.😬

[bigjim]

40 minutes ago, lappir said:

but the reality is we older people are the reason the younger ones don't know nothing and it's only going to get worse.

Trust me I tell them all the time. I think some are getting tired of hearing me. Buuuut remember when we search out a 3rd grader to teach us something new. Turn about is fair play as they say.😄

[bigjim]

2 hours ago, 2gypsies said:

I didn't realize Amazon was a manufacturer.

My guess it is all built by someone else under license to, or direction of Amazon. Kind of like Kenmore washers were mostly basically a whirlpool.  And most vehicle batt's were built by one factory  with the KMart, Sears Diehard, etc name on them. Of course each was built to the specification of the entity that had it built.

[RV_]

18 hours ago, Ray,IN said:

The link at page bottom seems to be broken Derek, or did I  miss a step?

Nope just worked again for me.

[RV_]

6 hours ago, bigjim said:

I didn't read it as Derek being up in arms as much as just making people aware so they can do their own do diligence and make their own decision.

 

🤑 Holy mackeral doc what do you do with all that stuff?  My Rv is already overflowing. If it makes you happy you should do it but I am in awe.

Thanks Jim, I reread it to see what could make it appear I was up in arms, and I could not find it either. Apparently some did not read it for comprehension.

[RV_]

If you can't read with comprehension, or try to pose me as chicken little in my passing along warnings about a select few items you did not understand in your hurry to attack others, then please, don't read my posts!  Some of you are rude because you see only what you want to read into a post, and make personal attacks implying I am sensationalizing something when all the above are misquotes, obvious never read it, or think anything I pass along he article nor I ever said anything about Amazon brand name products, just Amazon's discount brand Amazon Basics.

Joel, LOL! Show me where I said ""Amazon products are defective!" "and warned about all of Amazon's products. Did you get to the bottom after all the pics? There were the few items from the article I am including below in this post for those who want to know about a few items causing fire/melt downs and that video of the Amazon Basics microwave sparking and catching fire were scary. I expected you to see it is only about Amazon basics, their discount brand not the name brand and other items sold on Amazon. You said "But it makes for good copy to be able to boldly write "Amazon products are defective!"  That's why I class this article as "click bait". NO Joel it said some few of the Amazon Basics branded products are causing more problems with fires and melting than others. Amazon basics only and he provided links to the ones, the fire department response to the charger that caught fire stored unplugged in a box and it melted. Pictures of it, several other chargers and more if one scrolls down.

Barb, please quote where I appear up in arms. You too did not realize it was only about Amazon Basics, their discount brand.

Regardless of how rude you folks are when I pass along a specific caution about specific products from a clearly defined subset of Amazon's products, I can only surmise y'all are in too much of a hurry to read the actual topic of some Amazon Basics, the cheap stuff, are melting or catching fire.

The author really did his homework and narrowed it down to just a few items of the millions sold.

Boy folks, I have no idea where you got the case of the A's then misquote it. My next sentence is not yelling, just make sure you read it:

This is only about a small subset of Amazon called "Amazon Basics," a small subset of products Amazon sells directly as the same as white box computers in the old days, and generic products today like the "Patriot's Pride" line of items in the military commissaries or the Kroger Brands that have good products, as good, good enough, or better than the name brands for less.

Since it appears most are unaware of Amazon Basics, here is a direct link to them.

https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/947C6949-CF8E-4BD3-914A-B411DD3E4433?tag=mh0b-20&hvadid=77859202309033&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=bb&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_819dwrhx4k_b

To clarify. If you don't like CNN then don't read it.

The article has a list of about 50 items only from Amazon Basics selections which are different than the name brand items they sell. The items that have cause issues are flagged with hotlinks I left hot below.

Do you own a product that customers have flagged as dangerous?

The AmazonBasics items below have received three or more reviews describing potential dangers — with customers using terms such as "dangerous," "fire hazard" or "unsafe." Some items have very similar, or even identical, product names, so if you think you have purchased one of these products, check your order history to compare the identification numbers. While many are still for sale, several have been pulled from Amazon's site, now taking customers to dead URLs, and others are currently unavailable for purchase or new versions have been introduced.

Batteries

• AA 1.5 Volt Performance Alkaline Batteries
• AA & AAA Battery Charger
• 9 Volt Everyday Alkaline Batteries
• AAA 1.5 Volt Performance Alkaline Batteries
• Rechargeable Batteries

Other

• Outdoor Patio Heater
• 16/3 Vinyl Outdoor Extension Cord
• Mini DisplayPort Thunderbolt to HDMI Adapter
• Jumper Cable for Car Battery

Surge protectors

• 6-Outlet Surge Protector Power Strip, 790 Joule
• 6-Outlet Surge Protector Power Strip, 200 Joule
• 3-Outlet Surge Protector with 2 USB Ports

Charging cords and accessories

• Nylon Braided Lightning to USB A Cable, MFi Certified iPhone Charger
• USB Wall Charger
• USB Type-C to USB-A 2.0 Male Charger Cable
• Double Nylon Braided USB A Cable with Lightning Connector, Premium Collection
• USB Hub
• Lightning to USB A Cable, Advanced Collection
• Apple Certified 30-Pin to USB Cable
• USB Type-C to USB-A Male 3.1 Gen2 Adapter Charger Cable
• USB 2.0 A-Male to Micro B Charger Cable
• Lightning to USB A Cable iPhone Charger (1)
• Lightning to USB A Cable iPhone Charger (2)
• USB A Cable, MFi Certified iPhone Charger (3)
• Micro-USB to USB 2.0 Cable
• Double Braided Nylon Lightning to USB Cable, Advanced Collection
• 10-Port USB 3.0 Charging Hub Docking Station
• USB Type-C to USB Type-C 2.0 Charger Cable

Office appliances and electronics

• 6-Sheet Cross-Cut Paper and Credit Card Shredder
• Thermal Laminator Machine
• 8-Sheet Cross-Cut Paper and Credit Card Shredder
• 6-Sheet High-Security Micro-Cut Paper and Credit Card Shredder
• Wireless Computer Mouse with Nano Receiver
• High-Security Micro-Cut Paper Shredder with Pullout Basket
• 24-Sheet Cross-Cut Paper, CD and Credit Card Shredder with Pullout Basket
• AC Powered Computer Speakers

Kitchen appliances

• Voice Controlled Microwave
• 2 Slice Toaster
• Portable Electric Hot Water Kettle
• 5 Cup Coffee Maker

[RV_]

Down in the article they gave the criteria:

Key Findings

• Using keywords including "fire," "dangerous" and "burn," reporters identified more than 1,500 reviews about AmazonBasics electronics and appliances posted by US customers on Amazon.com from 2016 through early 2020 that described safety-related issues.
• More than 10% of the reviews identified by CNN reported that products had caught fire -- in some cases describing how flames shot out of the devices.
• Nearly 200 included reports of damage to homes or belongings, including charred walls and fried cellphones.

[docj]

With all due respect, this is the headline of the article in question.  It doesn't say anything about Amazon Basics. I stick to my position that the intent of the article was to create clicks, plain and simple.  Here's the headline: 

Dozens of Amazon's own products have been reported as dangerous -- melting, exploding or even bursting into flames. Many are still on the marketplace 

[docj]

19 minutes ago, RV_ said:

Using keywords including "fire," "dangerous" and "burn," reporters identified more than 1,500 reviews about AmazonBasics electronics and appliances posted by US customers on Amazon.com from 2016 through early 2020 that described safety-related issues.

How can 1,500 reports of issues with unrelated items made by a large number of subcontract vendors over a 4 year period mean anything?  Are we expected to believe there's a correlation between fires in USB chargers, routers, UPS devices, extension cords, etc, etc?  

We're told that 10% of the reports resulted in fires. That's ~150 fires across a collection of unrelated stuff over four years out of who knows how many items that were sold??  You can't claim there's a problem until you know what the failure rate is.   As I said in my previous post, almost everything has a failure rate; some of those failures can be serious,  But recalls only happen when the RATE of dangerous failure exceeds accepted thresholds.  Failures of unrelated items cannot be correlated with each other unless you can show some relationship , such as they were all made by the same Chinese factory.

Edited September 13, 2020 by docj

[Ray,IN]

Thanks for guiding me to the links, they were not highlighted and I totally missed that aspect. Through the years I have noted many Amazon products are directly sold by individuals in China, fulfilled by Amazon. They are easy to spot by the broken English, and improper sentence construction.

I attempt to do due diligence when determining if a product will satisfy my needs and quality concerns. I don't think I have bought Amazon Basics merchandise though.

Thanks Derek for re-awakening my skepticism when buying from Amazon.

[bigjim]

In current times I have skepticism about purchasing from any business.  Some more some less. Ironically I would like to believe them all and my congress ,senators and president. 

[Barbaraok]

7 hours ago, lappir said:

If you continue to support mostly Amazon there will be few if any "Market's" left. Buy local, buy from a small business and not the big box stores before all the "Family" businesses are no longer. The easier you make your life the less you will be able to do in the future. It's great fun to Joke about writing in cursive and leaving the keys in a car with a manual transmission, but the reality is we older people are the reason the younger ones don't know nothing and it's only going to get worse. It's easier to just do it my self instead of trying to teach that yahoo how to change a dam tire. Better yet, sign them up for AAA so I don't have to get out of bed after the football game when a friend pulled a prank and let the air out of the tires. 

Amazon is not saving your life. It's taking it away from you. 

Survival of the fittest. 

Only the good die young. 

No pain no gain. 

How many more do you want? 

Rodney Lappin RN

Buy local.  I would love to do more of that but;  we had to spend the summer in the Mesa, AZ area because of Dave's health, so that meant dependent on local stores and the situation of skyrocketing virus contagion in the state.  At one point it was the most dangerous place to be.  

Two, most people in Arizona did not believe there was a problem until several funeral directors started asking the state for help in ordering refrigerated truck because bodies were piling up.  

Three, since most people refused to believe there was a problem, people were not wearing masks, including store owners, store employees and total jerks off of the street.  All of which meant, there was no way in h*ll that I was going to walk into any 'local' store.  Now some of the big box stores started offering curbside pickup, like the grocery stores and restaurants, or it was ordering online.   And who had the most things to chose from, Amazon.    

Did I like to patronize them continuously, no.  Was I going to chance walking into a place and getting the virus and bringing it home to my husband who's recovering from quadruple bypass surgery and pacemaker implantation?  NO.   I almost lost him when the original surgery was done - he spent a week (alone) in cardiac ICU, had to have 3 days of dialysis, and his recovery is just now turning the corner and the original surgery was in March!    

And yes, I am angry.  

• I am angry at all of the idiots that refuse to believe science but will believe the latest conspiracy theory and snake oil salesmen.   
• I am so tired of scientific illiterate people trying to call every thing a hoax.  
• I am tired of worrying about family who are having to stay inside there homes because the air is so bad because of the smoke from all of the fires on the West Coast.   
• I'm tired of people who won't do simple things like wear a mask, stay 6' away from others, not go into crowded places,  not practice good hand washing hygiene.

So don't lecture me on what I have to do!