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UK: Laser pointer seller says eBay is the main source of UK illegal high-powered lasers

The managing director of two UK websites that sell laser pens issued a statement saying that eBay is the primary source of illegal, high-powered lasers in the United Kingdom. The February 17 2016 statement from Paul Loudon also notes that lasers above 1 mW are not freely available, and that existing laws already make it illegal to point a laser at an aircraft or vehicle.

Loudon estimates that eBay sales “are in the thousands” each day. According to the statement, “Currently there are over 2000 laser pens for sale on eBay UK. It appears 90% of the listings are for products that are clearly over 1mW and often with sales histories of thousands in a single listing. Multiply that and it becomes really obvious where all these overpowered lasers are coming from that idiots are abusing.”

He calls for eBay to begin “monitoring and delisting all these crazy hyped up laser listings”.

From a statement emailed to LaserPointerSafety.com on February 17 2016. The complete statement is reprinted below; click the “Read More…” link. And click here for other eBay-related stories, including one a day later where a UK public safety official called on eBay to “crack down” on laser sales.


Statement from Mr Paul Loudon, Managing Director and laser safety officer at laserads.co.uk, and owner of ecommerce sites laserpointers.co.uk and megagreen.co.uk regarding recent UK incident in which a Virgin Atlantic flight to New York was targeted with a laser pointer.

UK laws are already tough with regards to laser pointers. Trading standards make sure lasers above 1mW are not freely available in shops and online. Existing offensive weapon laws are used to imprison people regularly in UK, with over 100 already given prison sentences for pointing lasers at vehicles/aircraft.

So where are all these high power lasers coming from? Amazon has introduced REALLY tough seller rules ensuring only low power eye safe lasers are sold. As far we best can ascertain, ALL UK retailers online in Google results are complying with trading standards law and recommendations

So this leaves one really obvious mass market culprit, eBay. Its really clear that sellers on here — in the main sellers from China — appear to be lying about power output and even dispatch addresses claiming to be within UK but dispatching from china. eBay has listing rules, that only lasers 1mW or below can be listed and thats admirable. But its really obvious they are not policing the listings and sellers are lying.

A 1mW laser produces a small dot ideal for classroom/sales presentations. Yet eBay sellers are listing “1mW” lasers and describing them as "military grade", "beam travels 5 miles", "burning laser" etc.

Currently there are over 2000 laser pens for sale on eBay UK. It appears 90% of the listings are for products that are clearly over 1mW and often with sales histories of thousands in a single listing. Multiply that and it becomes really obvious where all these overpowered lasers are coming from that idiots are abusing.

Any laser that takes anything other than LR44 batteries or AAA batteries is pretty much designed to be a lot more powerful than a standard eye safe 1mW laser. Its really obvious that eBay UK is pretty much the only source left in UK for high power lasers that are being marketed to the wrong consumers, and it looks like sales are in the thousands PER DAY!

Its likely also that a lot of the consumers are buying these lasers believing them to be eye safe and within UK laws as they are listed correctly. But its clear sellers are sending much more powerful units and hyping the listings up to encourage sales to the most irresponsible consumers.

When people receive a laser they are intrigued amused and fascinated and love to show their friends. They have been sold these units as a 1mW laser but they receive a spectacular cinema-style light saber in their hands, and they look for things to do with it. if they are irresponsible it turns out to be pointing at planes, helicopters, vehicles, blocks of flats and people. However its known that for most people the novelty wears off and the lasers are treated badly. The lasers are normally poor quality and quickly get broken.

The day eBay starts monitoring and delisting all these crazy hyped up laser listings is the day that laser incidents will have peaked in the UK; the following day incidents will start reducing.