Just days away from the Great American Eclipse, people are busy making last minute purchase of equipment that are needed to enjoy the rare celestial event, scheduled for August 21. Among the most in-demand products in the market is the specialized glassed created for safe viewing of the total Solar Eclipse. People are flocking to both brick-and-mortar stores as well as to online outlets, in a bid to buy these glasses.
Amazon is one of the largest online retailers in the world, has been selling solar eclipse glasses as well. However, a notice from the e-commerce company revealed that not all of the glasses being sold might offer protection to the wearer's eyes while viewing the event.
The company says that some of the glasses are counterfeit and would not work as advertised.
Eclipse viewing glasses unsafe?
Although the company has not said that all of these glasses that it has retailed are fakes, it has revealed that some of the third party vendors using Amazon's website may be selling counterfeit glasses, which would not offer any protection to the wearer's eyes during the eclipse. The company said that it will remove such product listings from its stores as well.
Some of the unverified products, such as the “MASCOTKING Solar Eclipse Glasses 2017-CE and ISO Certified Safe Shades for Direct Sun Viewing—Eye Protection” and others have been removed from the online store. People who may have ordered one of these will also be getting a full refund for these products.
Amazon has also issued a warning to users not to wear these unverified shades during the eclipse and has confirmed that buyers of these glasses will not have to return said glasses to get the refund.
What did Amazon reveal about the situation?
The company said that it has decided to remove any such products that did not come from recommended manufacturers due to an abundance of caution.
In an interview to KGW, spokespersons for the company said that safety is the main priority for the company and any of the eclipse viewing glasses which did not have the necessary recommendations or certifications will be taken off the shelf.
The online retailer also indicated that people who have bought the glasses through its website but did not receive a notification e-mail bought safe glasses.
On the other hand, those who did receive the email, should not use the glasses they bought for watching the eclipse. Many of the third party retailers have claimed that Amazon has taken their products off the shelves, even though their products have the necessary certifications.
