Star/Zippo Lighters Being banned from sale!

[jayke]

So i sell star engraved lighters on ebay, The weekend i had one removed, Here is the message

Dear....

 

We appreciate that you chose eBay to list your listing(s). However, we have removed your listing(s) because it breaches our Hazardous Items policy.

 

Star Lighter

 

Why did we remove your listing?

 

You listed a Star lighter .however; The sale of novelty or child appealing lighters is prohibited under EU law. As your item fits into this category we’ve had to remove it. For more information please see URL:http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/425&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN

 

As we have noticed this is the first time you breached our policy, please take some time to read our help page below. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to reply to this email.

 

In accordance with our User Agreement, items prohibited by law or by eBay policy are not allowed on eBay.

 

Due to health and safety reasons, most hazardous materials (such as explosives, radioactive materials and flammable gases) may not be listed or sold on eBay. These items could pose a public-health risk during transport, and may not be sent by post or commercial carrier.

 

For example, you may not sell the following items on eBay:

 

- Any materials that the postal service has prohibited for shipping

- Fireworks

- Handheld lasers with more than 1 milliwatts (mW)

- Items that have large amounts of tritium like some glow sticks and exit signs

 

For more information on this policy, go to:

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/h ... rials.html

 

All fees related to this listing have been credited to your account. We also notified members who placed bids on the item that the listing has been canceled.

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE: If your listings breach eBay policy in future, your eBay privileges could be suspended. We value you as a member of our community and wish to continue this relationship, so we must ask you to refrain from further breaches of the User Agreement and eBay policy.

 

Please review eBay's Prohibited and Restricted Items guidelines and User Agreement by copying these links into a new browser window

 

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/sell/item_allowed.html

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/u ... ement.html

 

 

For more information on why eBay removes s, or to write to us with questions, please copy this link into a new browser window:

 

http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/confidence ... ended.html

 

Thank you for your cooperation in this important matter.

 

 

I called them and they said they made a mistake! i then got this message

Dear .......

 

We have returned your listing(s) so that it appears as an Unsold item in My eBay:

 

 

 

Please understand that we're not able to restart your listing for you. To relist your item, go to All Selling in My eBay, click the "Relist" link and follow the instructions.

 

We have notified any members who were bidding on this item that the listing was removed in error and has been restored to the site. We've also explained how they can find your item again if you relist it.

 

We apologise again for any inconvenience and thank you for your understanding.

 

Regards,

 

eBay Trust & Safety

 

 

 

I then have just received a call from them stating there is an apparent 'New Law' banning the sale of these lighters

 

Here is the link they provided

 

http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/safety/pr ... ers_en.htm

 

 

As you can see this was made in 2006 some new law that is

 

Now reading through this and talking to the importer we think there exempt from this law because of this section

 

 

Without prejudice to the prohibition of the placing on the market of novelty lighters established in Article 2(2) of this Decision, this definition shall not apply to refillable lighters for which producers provide on request to the competent authorities the necessary documentation substantiating that the lighters are designed, manufactured and placed on the market such as to ensure a continual expected safe use over a lifetime of at least five years, subject to repair, and which fulfill in particular all of the following requirements:

 

- a written guarantee from the producer of at least two years for each lighter, in accordance with Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council [3], They have

 

- the practical possibility to be repaired and safely refilled over the entire lifetime, including in particular a repairable ignition mechanism,They have

 

- Parts that are not consumable, but are likely to wear out or fail in continual use after the guarantee period, are accessible for replacement or repair by an authorised or specialised after-sales service centre based in the European Union;The wholesaler can do this

 

 

I also have the ISO 9994 certificate proving the Star lighter have passed!

 

Im awaiting a call back from them so i can show them this section in the article to prove there ok, I did mention the 3000+ listings that are on ebay at the moment and they have said there lawyers are looking into taking action against the sellers who have them listed

 

 

Has anybody else come across this? or has heard of it? If infact it is enforceable then Star & Zippo Lighters are to be no longer be sold within the UK either over the internet or in shops!

 

 

Your thoughts please

[jayke]

Would also like to know what Mastergrave, U Marq and Charles Birch + all the hundreds of other wholesalers who sell these lighters think...

[Lee]

thats an intersting topic, keep us posted.

 

Lee

[Rizla]

I sell Zippo & Star lighters upn down the UK and all over the world on a very regular basis. I was going to post on here last month but forgot.

My trouble started when I was at the postoffice and was aked what was in the parcels... "Zippo Lighters"... Well we can't send them now!

 

New regs came out with Royal Mail with a whole list of now banned items. Lighters being one of them. After several phone calls to various departments (some of whom had no idea what was going on) I got through to some top dog. He told me they were now on their banned list. Can't post them withing the UK (so it's not an EU reg as such). Told him they were new & empty (safe) but he was not having it. I said in that case I will split them into parts and post seperatley... Wow, did he loos his temper... "No, no, no I know what your doing...."

 

So I said "So that means Zippo and every wholesaler in the UK has to cease posting these items?" YES!

 

Yet another department told me that if they are new and contain NO fuel, then that would be ok.... LOL. Anyway told the PO and she eventuall sent them. And I still do every day.

 

A few weeks later I found their banned list and 'empty' is ok (apparently)

 

I think some people are interpreting this new ruling in different ways.

[Mick Friend]

They have installed new equipment at some sorting offices that 'sniffs' for hydrocarbons. explosives, drugs'

[grahamparker]

But if they are empty and have never been used there shouldn't be any problem.

[Mick Friend]

I agree - But when has Logic ever, ever, ever meant anything in this sh!t hole of a country?

[Alan]

Sending a used one back to Zippo for repair could be a problem

[Web_Engraver]

Sending a used one back to Zippo for repair could be a problem

 

If you send it to Zippo UK in London for repair without the insert they will fit a new one, so no problem with post regs & a new insert all F.O.C. Win Win alround.

[Count Muppet]

I thought zippo uk was gone now, and it was all being done from germany

[Web_Engraver]

The fuel tins have old london address at W10 5AS, but the web site has:

 

Zippo European Repair Clinic

c/o Zippo UK Ltd

The Barley Mow Centre

10 Barley Mow Passage

Chiswick, London

W4 4PH

 

I didn't know about the move.

Cheers Phil

[Rizla]

Haven't had time to get back to the forum with other issues...

 

 

Had two gone AWOL with royal mail... One to Denmark. Had send another (after engraving again)

 

This time I MADE SURE it went by AirSure (tracked) it should have they done the first time but the numpty that did the PO run sent it AirMail (no Good)

 

Been stuck in Royal Mails customs for 3 days. On the good side it apparently is today in Denmark... I'll wait till it get's to the door!

 

Bear in mind that 'IF' RM deem it unfit, they are not (apparently) obliged to return it to you and getting compo is not worth it.

 

May be worth creating your own sticker telling them what is in the package.. New, Empty, Safe.... I dunnow!

 

Getting good safe info out of them is nigh on impossible!!

 

What a game for online sales in this country....

[jayke]

Just realised i havent updated this thread, Ive been told from ebay that they made a mistake and im to relist the lighters as long as there not advertised as novelty which ive never done!