INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Image copyrightWhichImage caption
Which tested four alarms and says dozens more are equally dangerous
Dozens of carbon monoxide alarms sold via Amazon and eBay have been taken offline after failing safety tests.Consumer watchdog Which said
some of the alarms seemed identical to ones that had failed tests in 2016.Three of the unbranded devices, made in China, repeatedly failed
to sound when carbon monoxide was present.Which said there were flaws in the UK's current product testing system
It advised anyone owning one of the alarms to replace it immediately.Consumers should contact the company they had bought it from and
request a refund, it said.Alex Neill, Which managing director of home products and services, said: "It's extremely concerning that these
unsafe alarms were being sold by major retailers,"When household names such as Amazon and eBay are selling products that could put consumers
at risk, it is clear more must be done by businesses and the government to proactively identify potentially dangerous products and stop them
from entering people's homes."Which said that the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) needed to take a more "active role" in
identifying products on sale that posed a safety risk.Amazon and eBay have delisted the alarms tested by Which and another 50 lookalike
alarms likely to have been manufactured in the same place.An eBay spokeswoman said: "The safety of customers is our number one priority and
we work closely with bodies such as Trading Standards to ensure listings sold on our marketplace comply with the law."The items flagged by
Which did not comply with the required UK regulations and were removed
"We are working with the sellers of these products to ensure their customers are aware they have been removed from the site."Amazon told the
TheIndianSubcontinent: "All sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who don't will be subject to action including potential
The products in question are no longer available." Carbon monoxide is known as the "silent killer" as it is invisible and
odourless.According to official figures, accidental carbon monoxide poisoning resulted in more than 50 recorded deaths in England and Wales
in 2015 and 200 hospitalisations.Since 2015, private landlords have been required to have alarms in any room "used as living accommodation"
in which a solid fuel appliance, such as a boiler or wood-burning stove, is in use.
