The APPCOG is delighted to announce that eBay have responded positively to our request to remove all black spot/patch indicator carbon monoxide alarms from sale or advertisement on their site. This change will protect more people from the deadly risk posed by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Following contact from the APPCOG, the sale of black spot carbon monoxide detectors was urgently reviewed by eBay’s Prohibited and Restricted Items team in accordance with eBay’s Product Safety Policy; which had been highlighted in the APPCOG’s letter.

Yesterday morning, 20 July, Mr Alasdair McGowan, Head of Public Affairs and Director of Government Relations at eBay UK, confirmed that the Prohibited and Restricted Items team has determined that all listings of black spot carbon monoxide detectors “will indeed be removed”. eBay UK will take two actions:

1. They will update their filters to flag these products if they are listed in future ads.
2. They will conduct manual sweeps to remove current ads for of black spot and patch carbon monoxide detectors.

eBay thanks the APPCOG for raising this issue.

Barry Sheerman MP says:

“The APPCOG parliamentary members and myself are delighted to hear that any listings of black spot/patch indicator carbon monoxide detectors will be removed from sale or advertisement in accordance with eBay’s Product Safety Policy. I would like to express my thanks, and that of APPCOG, to Mr McGowan and the Prohibited and Restricted Items team for taking such swift action on this important consumer safety issue.”

eBay’s decision to act will protect more people from the deadly risk posed by carbon monoxide poisoning. As the MHCLG plans to expand the requirements for carbon monoxide alarms, it is essential that landlords install an alarm with an audible or alerting indication in order to keep their tenants safe – which these dangerous black spot ‘detectors’ do not do. By preventing the sale of these unsafe products, eBay UK and Amazon are up holding safety standards and protecting consumers.

For more information on carbon monoxide alarms, and how to choose a safe product, see this guide from United Against CO.

Photo credit: Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash