Trading Standards have issued a recall on two alcohol hand sanitisers including a toxic hand sanitiser that were being sold on online marketplaces. Both sanitisers in question (Ibcccndc & Yucky hands) are being recalled for containing insufficient amounts of ethanol, meaning they don’t actually kill bacteria or viruses and Ibcccndc also contains methanol (measured value: 37.4 % by weight), which is acutely toxic to the central nervous system and to the eyes.
According to the report, the sanitiser was still being sold just two days ago so you might want to check if you’ve recently purchased either of the two, if you have stop using them and if you see them online do not buy them. After the announcement of the highly toxic contents of Ibcccndc, both AliBaba and eBay has removed the listings.
“The product contains an insufficient amount of ethanol (measured values: 7% by volume). Consequently, it does not kill bacteria or viruses, which could then reach the user, increasing the risk of infection. Moreover, the product contains methanol (measured value: 37.4 % by weight), which is acutely toxic to the central nervous system and to the eyes. Furthermore, the required hazard pictograms and warnings are missing.”
– Trading Standards
This isn’t the first time the rise in demand for hand sanitisers has caused a recall. In July last year, there was a toxic hand sanitiser being recalled that could turn people blind, kill them or cause a fire.
You can check if you have been selling any of these products being recalled due to health and safety fears by going to the trading standards website which can be found here.