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Dozens of Amazon's own products have been reported as dangerous: melting, exploding or even bursting into flames. Many of them are still on the market – and inside customers’ homes http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
Since 2016, at least 1,500 reviews, covering 70+ items, have described AmazonBasics products exploding, catching on fire, smoking, melting, causing electrical malfunctions or otherwise posing risks, a CNN investigation reveals. Amazon said it stands by the safety of its products.
The fire that left this chair charred was caused by an AmazonBasics USB cable, the fire marshal determined. It’s no longer for sale, but there were warnings from other customers on Amazon’s product page for at least a year before it was pulled: http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
This AmazonBasics surge protector burst into flames while it was plugged in but not being used, another customer reported. Amazon continued to sell the surge protector for nearly two years, even as 40 more reviews reporting safety issues piled up: http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
When Amazon finally did pull the surge protector, it not appear to provide any notification to customers, including to the CNN reporters who purchased it as part of our investigation. And it did not post any message on its site about why: http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
More reviews from all over the US call attention to the very same problems across a variety of products: the same panel within a microwave catching fire, the paint on outdoor patio heaters smoldering, electronics malfunctioning when they're not even in use http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
One former Amazon employee said that when she left, she was concerned that a drive to increase sales of AmazonBasics items – which the company promotes heavily – would overshadow a focus on safety. Amazon said it thoroughly investigates any indicators of safety concerns.
In the US, Amazon publicly recalled two AmazonBasics items in 2018 and 2019: a power bank and a space heater. Beyond these two official recalls, the company has never publicly acknowledged that AmazonBasics products have any safety issues. http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
Amazon declined to provide details about why certain products were investigated and removed from its site. Others with repeated complaints about the same hazards are still available to purchase today, like this surge protector, which Amazon said is safe http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
Do you own a product that fellow customers have flagged as hazardous? Check our full list of AmazonBasics products that have reviews describing them as potentially dangerous: http://cnn.it/3bKFpKL
