Amazon's ban on knock-off hoverboards has had a huge effect on the market for them

Amazon's crackdown on the sale of cheap, knock-off hoverboards from suspicious sellers has had a big effect on the market for the devices, Quartz reports.

The market for cheap hoverboards was "wiped clean," a vendor told Quartz. "Small factories have exited the market, and everyone is paying more attention to safety and patents."

Hoverboards - or, as they are also known, "self-balancing two wheel boards" - were one of the biggest gifts this Christmas time, but safety concerns arose after a number caught fire due to faulty electronics.

Many of these dangerous boards cost significantly less than the real thing - which can start at £599 ($890) - making them seem like a good deal.

One seller from China told Quartz that his factory has laid off 400 workers as sales dropped 50% after Amazon's crackdown. "Before we were making about 1,000 hoverboards a day," the retailer said. "Now we're doing [a] few hundred."

The UK government seized over 32,000 dangerous hoverboards before Christmas, some of which were destroyed. The big three US airlines - Delta, United, and American Airlines - banned hoverboards from planes over security concerns.

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