The Korea Consumer Agency (KCA) said on the 21st that it conducted a fact-finding survey on heating-function leg massagers that have not received safety standard certification and recommended that importers and sellers display safety accident warnings.
Under the Electrical Appliances and Household Products Safety Control Act, leg massagers are classified as "electric massagers" and must be certified for safety standards. However, products that operate only on an AC power supply of 30 volts (V) or less, a DC power supply of 42V or less, or batteries are exempt from certification.
As a result of examining 10 products on the market that are excluded from these standards, the Consumer Agency confirmed that all met the safety standards. However, even if they comply with safety standards, various safety accidents may occur if used incorrectly, yet all 10 products among those surveyed lacked or had insufficient warnings about safety accidents such as low-temperature burns on the main unit, sales pages, and elsewhere.
The Consumer Agency recommended that the importers and sellers of the products improve labeling to prevent hazards such as low-temperature burns, and all businesses replied that they would strengthen labeling. The Consumer Agency also noted that, despite using heating and acupressure functions, massagers for various body parts other than the legs and feet are excluded from the list of electrical appliances subject to safety certification, and said improvements are needed.
According to the Consumer Agency, there were a total of 205 hazard cases related to leg and foot massagers over the past three years. From 26 cases in 2023 to 81 last year, and 61 through October this year, damages continued to occur. By symptom type, burns were the most common at 55.1% (113 cases), followed by injuries to the skin and subcutaneous tissue at 21.5% (44 cases).