What is AmazonBasics?
Launched in 2009, AmazonBasics is Amazon’s private label brand for everything from kitchen gadgets to tech accessories. The brand originally focused on small, relatively inexpensive products, but has since grown to include thousands of “everyday items.”
A growing number of AmazonBasics products have recently become bestsellers, and many have ratings of 4 stars or above, according to Marketplace Pulse [1]. Amazon's sales have been soaring as millions of Americans have been staying at home -- and in many cases working remotely -- during the COVID-19 pandemic.
What's the Problem?
Consumers across the U.S. have raised safety concerns about AmazonBasics items in complaints to government regulators and in reviews posted on the Amazon website, according to CNN [2]. Since 2016, at least 1,500 reviews, affecting over 70 items, have described AmazonBasics or Amazon Essentials products exploding, catching fire, smoking, melting, or causing electrical malfunctions, according to an analysis on the company's website.
Which AmazonBasics Products are Dangerous?
- Surge protectors
- Phone chargers
- Batteries
- Power banks
- USB cords
- Paper shredders
- Microwaves
- Space heaters
- And more
Have any of the Products Been Recalled?
Approximately 30 AmazonBasics products with 3 or more reviews using terms like "hazard" or "fire," or saying the item should be recalled, remain for sale on Amazon.com. At least 11 other products with these kinds of negative reviews were no longer for sale by the time the CNN report was published on 9/10/20.
Some became unavailable shortly after the report was made public, and at least 4 product pages were removed from the retailer's site entirely. Amazon confirmed that at least 8 of these products were investigated and subsequently determined to meet the company's safety standards.
In 2018 and 2019, Amazon recalled 2 AmazonBasics items after the company received 53 reports of its power banks overheating and 25 complaints of a space heater overheating, burning or sparking. It said it notified the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) of its intent to recall the items.
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The Problem With Amazon Third-Party Sellers
Amazon has also recently been under scrutiny for allowing third parties to sell allegedly hazardous products on its site, and numerous court rulings have found that the retailer can be held liable for defective items sold in its third party marketplace.
Have Any Lawsuits Been Filed?
In 2019, Amazon settled a lawsuit for an undisclosed amount with Austin Parra, a man who sustained second-degree burns and injuries to his throat from smoke inhalation after his Connecticut apartment caught fire due to a short circuit in an AmazonBasics USB cord he was using to charge his cell phone.
See other product liability cases we're currently taking.
Do I Have an AmazonBasics Lawsuit?
The Products Liability Litigation Group at our law firm is an experienced team of trial lawyers that focus on the representation of plaintiffs in AmazonBasics Lawsuits. We are handling individual litigation nationwide and currently accepting new personal injury and property damage cases in all 50 states.
If you or a loved one was injured by an AmazonBasics product, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to a settlement by filing a suit and we can help.
