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Complete Airbag Ban on eBay???
Summary: thediymotorist is seeking clarification about an eBay policy update banning the sale of airbags and related components due to legal requirements. Despite the policy's effective date being 01/08/2026, an airbag was purchased from them after this date, causing confusion and speculation of a possible typo in the date. red_magpie suggests contacting the Health and Safety Executive for more information on legal requirements, while tommystrezures offers details from another source confirming stricter policies on these sales, though thediymotorist believes this to be outdated. john1297576 mentions that listings will be removed by eBay if not taken down by 01/09/2026.
eBay's Complete Ban on selling Airbags and associated Pyrotechnics 2026
Hi all, trying to get to the bottom of this, received an email from eBay on 23/07/2026 stating the following:
Dear Seller,
We're writing to let you know about an important policy update affecting sellers on eBay.
Due to local legal requirements, pyrotechnic articles intended for vehicles can no longer be sold on eBay.
Effective 01/08/2026, airbags and related pyrotechnic vehicle safety components are not permitted to be listed or sold on eBay by any seller.
What's not allowed on eBay?
The following items are prohibited when sold separately:
Uninstalled airbags
Steering wheel airbag covers
Airbag inflators (gas generators)
Seatbelt pretensioners
Other pyrotechnic safety modules used in vehicles
Airbags and other pyrotechnic vehicle safety components are only permitted when they are already pre-installed in a complete vehicle being sold on eBay. Standalone components or modules may not be listed.
What you need to do
Review your active and draft listings in the affected categories
Remove any listings for standalone airbags, seatbelt pretensioners or related pyrotechnic safety components by 01/09/2026.
If these listings are not removed by 01/09/2026, eBay will remove them on your behalf. Any listings you remove yourself, or that eBay removes for you as part of this update, will not negatively affect your account's policy compliance history. Please note that relisting these items may result in selling restrictions.
Concierge team have not really been any help, they seem to not know anything about this. We have already had someone purchase an Airbag from us today, so it seems that eBay are not blocking sales from 01/08/2026 as stated in that email from them. Really confused and don't want to fall foul by selling the Airbag.
Is it maybe a typo and 01/08 should of read 01/09?
Can anyone help?
Thanks
john1297576
Mentor1 week agoDoes this not say it all, as no doubt preventing a sale for an item still listed would be a problem for seller.
“If these listings are not removed by 01/09/2026, eBay will remove them on your behalf.”
thediymotorist
OP1 week agoDoes not say it all in the slightest if you properly read the email.
tommystrezures
Mentor1 week agoI found this online which may help (or may not help) but the dates are not typos.
"eBay’s vehicle parts and accessories policy restricts the sale of airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, airbag sensors and other SRS parts to approved sellers. Under the policy, sellers must hold recognised certification, declare the vehicle identification number of the donor vehicle, and confirm the part has never been deployed or subject to a recall. Listings that cannot meet these conditions are being removed, which is why private sellers and uncertified traders are increasingly finding these parts blocked or delisted."
This is from a large automotive companies website I may hasten to add.
thediymotorist
OP1 week agoYeah saw that, but the email received states ALL eBay sellers are now banned. We have been selling airbags for years with no issues, I believe that site saying that was giving out incorrect or outdated info.
red_magpie
Mentor1 week ago · EditedI'm not clear why you think the date may be a typo?
eBay informed you on 23 July that these items could not be listed from 1st August, and that existing listings need to be removed by 1st September, or eBay will remove them on the seller's behalf.
It's a pretty harsh timescale, I agree, especially for sellers who will be stuck with unsold stock. But there doesn't seem anything to suggest a typo.
eBay's message is surprisingly unspecific about the legal requirements that have brought this about. There is already a ban on the resale of used airbags and components, but I can't find anything recent relating to new items. You could try asking advice from the Health and Safety Executive, who seem to have the lead on this as airbags are classed as pyrotechnic devices.
thediymotorist
OP1 week agoI think the date may be a typo by the fact that someone this morning has purchased an Airbag from us, surely eBay would of blocked the sale according to the dates on their email? They say Airbag sales are banned after 01/08 but allow one 2 days later...
thediymotorist
OP1 week agoEffective 01/08/2026, airbags and related pyrotechnic vehicle safety components are not permitted to be listed or sold on eBay by any seller.
If this is the case and that date is not a typo, why has a buyer been allowed to purchase an Airbag from us? I believe that sentence should read 01/09 not 01/08.
thediymotorist
OP1 week agoI have asked Concierge team to escalate this to get confirmation, as they have next to no knowledge regarding this policy change, which in itself is weird.