Feds Probe 'Hoverboard' Fires

Self-balancing scooters are over-heating and catching fire in sufficient numbers -- as in a recent incident in Chappaqua, New York -- that they’ve been banned from several airlines and are being investigated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

“This is a popular holiday item and it’s going to be in a lot of consumers’ homes, and we’d like to quickly get to the bottom of why some hoverboards catch fire,” spokeswoman Patty Davis told CNNMoney on Monday.

Though they’re one of the items on this year’s most-wanted gift list, Amazon.com has stopped selling almost every model of the popular products, and overstock.com has stopped them entirely, CNNMoney said.

Delta, United and American banned the ‘hoverboards’ earlier in December because of safety concerns.

Concerns are mostly about the lithium-ion batteries.

According to WebMD, since August 2015, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has received 29 reports of emergency-room injuries related to the hoverboards and and is investigating at least 10 fires.

New York City banned the ‘hoverboards’ from city sidewalks and streets months ago -- but not because of safety. An NYPD spokesman told Time.com that hoverboards are illegal on NYC sidewalks because they are motor vehicles that can’t be registered.

SEE: Hoverboard Explodes, Damaging Chappaqua Home