AN URGENT recall has been issued for a popular gadget sold on TikTok over concerns it electrocutes users.
The recall notice states owners of the product should return the item due to an error with its plug.
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The Jia Le Xin 3 Socket USB Hub has a “serious risk” of giving users an electric shock as it has a “noncompliant plug”, according to the recall notice filed with the Office for Product Safety and Standards.
Sold on TikTok, the bottom two pins on the item’s plug are less than 9.55mm away from its edge, which is “less than the minimum permissible distance”.
This means that if users plug in the device without the pins fully entering the socket, they could be at risk of an electric shock if they try to remove the plug by using their fingers close to the base of the pins.
The notice explained that since the product did not meet the requirements of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 or the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994, it had been recalled.
TikTok has said it has also removed the listing of the product from its online marketplace.
The specific product affected has a barcode of 6952640500010, product number F001U, and was made in China.
It is described as a Black USB hub with space for three sockets.
The recall notice states: “The product presents a serious risk of electric shock because it is supplied with a noncompliant plug.
“The bottom two pins are less than 9.5mm from the periphery of the plug, less than the minimum permissible distance.
“If the user plugs in the device without the pins fully entering the socket, and they then try to remove the plug by placing their fingers close to the base of the pins, they may receive an electric shock.”
The notice added: “The product does not meet the requirements of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 or the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994.”
This comes as an investigation found popular money gadgets were still being sold online despite them being subject to multiple government recalls.
So-called energy saving eco plugs have appealed to Brits desperate to keep spiralling bills down.
These scam plugs claim to save households money on their electricity by “stabilising” voltage and “balancing” electric current to “optimise” the performance of household appliances.
However, Which? tested eight such devices bought from AliExpress, Amazon, eBay, Shein, Temu and TikTok Shop and found they failed basic electrical safety standards, meaning they are illegal and potentially dangerous.
The consumer watchdog said the platforms all removed the listings it reported to them, but many identical-looking devices were still available to buy weeks later.
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It happens to be supplied with a three-pin “clover” style unfused plug.
Unfused plugs pose a fire risk in the UK due to their dimensions.
This means its possible for users to touch the live pin when plugging in or unplugging it from the socket.
For this reason, the product does not meet the requirements of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 or the Plugs & Sockets etc (Safety) Regulations 1994.
Shoppers have been advised to stop using the product immediately and dispose of it.
In 2022, researchers tested near-identical devices from Amazon and eBay twice and reported them to the platforms, which then delisted them.
The Office for Product Safety and Standards officially recalled four similar devices on AliExpress, eBay and Wish the same year, citing a “serious risk of fire and electric shock”.
One device Which? said was available on AliExpress claimed to “reduce” line loss and “improve” power factor, with around 260 buyers.
Another sold via eBay by a third party seller claimed to use “a capacitor system to store electrical energy, allowing it to be released more smoothly”.
The one sold on Shein was branded as a “Magic Electricity-Saving Box”.
Experts at Which? found that the items they tested had poor quality soldering, contained too much lead – which is tightly regulated due to potential health side effects – and had unmarked non-standard capacitors indicating they were not manufactured in the UK and therefore potentially unsafe.
