FBI Issues Consumer Warning About Fraudulent Batteries
Fake batteries pose health, safety, injury and death risks.
October 13, 2022, Los Angeles, CA – The Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a consumer warning about the dangers of counterfeit, fake, and fraudulent batteries. Batteries are a daily staple of consumer products and are common in toys, tools, phones, remotes, and smoke detectors. However, criminals are leveraging a global supply chain shortage and consumer inattention to rip off the public with dangerous fakes and scams that may result in injury or death.
Consumers who believe they are buying legitimate, safe batteries from Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Wish, and Newegg may be in for a surprise. Fraudulent batteries in smoke detectors, baby monitors, and health devices may catastrophically fail in a real emergency. Fraudulent batteries used in everyday devices like phones, laptops, and toys have an explosion and fire risk. The FAA identified 300 air/airport incidents (fires and smoke) between March 1991 and November 2020 involving lithium batteries carried as cargo or baggage.
Could you spot this counterfeit AA Duracell battery purchased on Walmart.com or the fraudulent "Amazon's Choice" 18650 battery pack offered on Amazon? The model caused a fire and emergency diversion landing of a United Airlines flight in 2020, yet a 20,000mAh model is sold as "Amazon's Choice."
Shown: Authentic and counterfeit Duracell AA battery. If your battery label peels off easily, you have a counterfeit. A battery pack matching the item shown was purchased from Amazon as a direct seller. The purchased item tested at only 5,100mAh, much less than the claimed capacity of the item shown, or the purchased item.
The FBI makes the following recommendations:
Fraudulent Li-ion 18650 batteries used in laptops, flashlights, cameras, tool battery packs, hoverboards, toys, e-cigarettes and vape devices are particularly hazardous -- they have a fire and explosion risk. Most fakes are easy to spot; there is no legitimate individual 18650 battery with a capacity above 3800mAh, yet batteries with wild capacity claims up to 12,000mAh are common online.
The fraudulent 18650 Li-ion batteries below were found or purchased on Amazon, Walmart, eBay, or Newegg.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned consumers not to buy or use loose 18650 lithium-ion battery cells. 18650 cells are manufactured as industrial component parts of battery packs and are not intended for individual sale to consumers. However, unscrupulous China salvagers separate the battery packs and re-label the recycled unprotected 18650 cells as "new" with wild capacity claims, selling them online through Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Newegg, Wish.com, and others
Consumers receiving a fraudulent 18650 Li-ion battery should stop using it immediately. Do not mail, ship, disassemble, or throw the battery in the trash; you may be responsible for an injury or death, and in violation of federal law. Find a qualified recycler for drop-off. Notify the e-commerce website and the seller you received a fraudulent battery and demand a refund, or cancel the charge on your credit card or Pay-Pal account.
You may have additional legal remedies, which vary by state. For example, California's Consumer Legal Remedy Act (California Civil Code §1782) has protections of $1,000 to $5,000, plus damages, for fraudulent items.
Report suspected counterfeit or fake goods through:
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