Smart toilet seats sold online in China found to be substandard, with electric shock risk

SHANGHAI — Nearly 40 per cent of the “smart toilet seats” sold on China’s online shopping platforms and tested by authorities in Shanghai were found to be substandard, state media reported, with some even posing a risk of electric shock.

In a recent inspection, the Shanghai Market Supervision Administration tested 28 batches of the toilet seats which are popular among China’s middle class and have functions including heating, warm water washing and air drying.

Of the samples tested, 11 batches did not meet standards, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Sunday (March 17).

“Some [toilet seats] had structural defects that are potential safety hazards and could pose risks to consumers,” Mr Chu Zhangying, an official with the administration, was quoted as saying.

“The problems we’ve found are certainly typical in the industry,” he added.

The substandard products have been banned from sale and their manufacturers are being investigated.

Some of the units did not have proper protection against electric shock, the inspection found.

For example, one toilet lid featured in the report did not have a ground wire connecting the metal component used to test water temperature to the ground.

Mr Ni Bin, director of the inspection team, said ground wires were required for many home appliances, including smart toilet seats, for any metal parts that might carry electricity when the insulation layer became ineffective.

“The metal surface of the temperature controller is in direct contact with the water in the toilet cistern,” Mr Bin was quoted as saying. “So if the metal surface isn’t connected to a ground wire and the basic insulation fails … when the water is sprayed onto the body by the washing system, the consumer may be at risk of getting an electric shock.”

Other problems included exposed wires and improper voltage.

Most of the substandard toilet seats were priced between 1,000 yuan and 2,000 yuan (US$150 and US$300), but the most expensive one cost 3,980 yuan (US$590), the report said.

Three of the substandard batches were Korean products, while one was a US brand, according to the report.

Mr Xu Sheng, deputy head of the inspection team, said the growing popularity of the product in recent years had seen many ceramic sanitary ware manufacturers – who lacked experience in electrical home appliances – enter the market.

“In order to take a share of the market, many of them just disassembled foreign products and copied them. So it’s very hard for them to meet production quality requirements,” Sheng said.

Smart toilet seats became a sought-after item in China about four years ago, when many tourists started bringing them home from trips to Japan. Two Chinese tourists were caught stealing one of the toilet seats from their hotel in Japan in 2016. It was returned when the hotel contacted the tour group and asked for it back. SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST