Ebay/Paypal Issues (2)

A warning to consumers thinking of purchasing electrical items from ebay sellers. My experience indicates that many domestic electrical items, including light fittings, sold by ebay sellers, are unbranded, untested and non-compliant with Australian Standards and Electrical Safety Regulations. These items come from China, look like a bargain but pose a potential fire risk. When purchasing electrical items through ebay, always check the description for compliance details, or, if you have already purchased, check with your Electrician to determine if the items comply with the relevant Australian Standards.

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I won’t buy electrical items from ebay unless they are sold by a known Australian company or are a known brand. Those are rarely cheap :slight_smile:

[edit] I tell a lie. I bought a chinese made no-name mini drip coffee maker. It came with two short black cups/mugs but its the perfect size for a standard coffee with milk/cream. Not that easy to clean all its bits but is doable. Cost about $25 IIRC, and worth every penny. I saw one the same a few months later for over $100. Not worth that much.

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The country of overseas supply or manufacture is irrelevant as Australia’s certifications (eg AS/NZS 3820) are independent of all other national systems. IE Australia does not recognise any other system of certification and standards.

A significant portion of the electrical items imported by distributors and resold in Australia are manufactured in China. They come with an assurance they comply with all the applicable standards and can be legally sold for use in homes. The legal obligations on the importer and Australia resellers include meeting the requirements of AS/NZS 4417.2.

It’s likely your local electrician can only provide one response to the following.

The item needs to be purchased through an Australian importer or business in accordance with the requirements of AS/NZS 4417.2.

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Another electrical item often not considered are replacement rechargeable batteries. There are risks of buying such batteries online from unknown sellers, such as those through eBay. I raised the problem here:

With the proliferation of battery run devices, there is the temptation is to buy a cheap non-OEM (original equipment manufacturer) replacement to save some dosh. It can be dangerous buying from unknown sellers as there is a high risk that the batteries could fail, damage the device they are used in and lead to injury/fires.

Like mains connected electrical components which you have raised and responded to by @markm, one also needs to be very careful on where they source replacement rechargeable batteries as there are many (unbranded/counterfeit/unknown brand) battery packs available cheaply online with dubious quality.

If one buys online through selling platforms like eBay etc, there may be little recourse when something does go wrong.

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Welcome to the community.

Thanks for your reminder. This problem has also come up in relation to USB chargers not being up to our standards and sometimes catching alight if I recall correctly.

I have renamed your topic to open it up to wider discussions about problems with Ebay/Paypal purchases. There is a prior topic that people can look if they are interested and want more information.

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