Neil Hamilton MS warns constituents of dangers purchasing electrical beauty products online

NEIL Hamilton, MS for Mid & West Wales, and Leader of UKIP Wales is warning his constituents about buying electrical beauty products online.

Mr Hamilton, a member of the Climate Change, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee, has joined with the charity ‘Electrical Safety First’ to warn of the dangers of buying electrical beauty products from an online marketplace during lockdown.

He said:

“With hairdressers and beauty salons currently closed in Wales, I was concerned to hear about research which reveals more than a third, 38%, of adults in Wales have either already purchased or are considering purchasing an electrical beauty item such as hair clippers or hair remover kits from an online marketplace.

“Electrical Safety First has expressed to me their concerns about dangerous beauty products being sold online, and it might not be immediately obvious from the advertisements why they might be dangerous.

“It is vital to raise awareness of the potential dangers of purchasing products from online marketplaces. Many are not compatible to be used in Wales, often advertised without UK plugs, and sold with dangerously poor-quality travel adaptors for permanent use.

“The Charity has explained how this is illegal and risks electric shock or a fire in your home. I would strongly urge everyone to make sure they buy from reputable sellers.”

Leading consumer safety Charity Electrical Safety First carried out an investigation which discovered hair clippers, hair remover kits and other beauty salon electrical items for sale on online marketplaces are unfit for sale to Welsh consumers as advertised.

They stated there has been a significant increase in people looking to cut their own hair, as analysis of Google Trends data shows web searches for hair clippers at an all-time high in April.

As part of a snapshot investigation, 15 listings were visually analysed by the Charity, equally spread across Amazon Marketplace, eBay and Wish. Based on a visual assessment of the listings as they were advertised, all were deemed to be seriously dangerous to the user.

Mains powered hair clippers and electric nail files were found to be frequently advertised without UK plugs, instead being sold with dangerously poor-quality travel adaptors for permanent use. This risks severe electric shock or fire.

Home hair removal kits were also discovered being advertised with plugs that are illegal for sale in the UK. The dimensions of these plugs are so small they risk allowing the user to come into contact with the mains power supply when plugging the product in. They are also frequently unfused, risking a fire in the event of a short circuit.

Robert Jervis-Gibbons, Public Affairs Manager at Electrical Safety First, commented: “At a time where we’re all expected to spend longer indoors it is more important than ever the products coming into our homes are safe. What we have found is an example of third-party sellers putting consumers at risk through products that are of particular interest at this time.

“With so many Welsh consumers interested in these items at the moment, we would urge consumers to only buy electrical products from reputable retailers and for Welsh Government to take action to raise awareness that buying electrical items from marketplaces can lead to fires in people’s homes in Wales.”