29 Apr 2026 Alice Dearden · Prevention of Future Deaths report Wiltshire and Swindon
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Concerns raised 2 Failure to include concentrated reportable poisons in prohibited-item lists View source Inability of mail order businesses to make suspicious-transaction checks View source
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
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AI-generated summary
Alice Dearden · Prevention of Future Deaths report
This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.
Report summary
Alice Dearden suffered from mental health difficulties and died at home in Wiltshire on 28 February 2020 after consuming a quantity of a substance bought online. The report raised concerns that mail-order businesses may not be able to identify suspicious transactions involving reportable substances, and that eBay’s prohibited-items policy did not include concentrated reportable poisons.
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× Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Failure to include concentrated reportable poisons in prohibited-item lists
Wider context from the report “████████ is a reportable substance under the Poisons Act 1972. A supplier of the substance has a statutory duty to report any suspicious transaction. The statute goes on to give guidance so as to determine what might be a suspicious transaction.
Section 3C (4) reads “In deciding whether there are reasonable grounds for suspecting such a thing, regard must be had to all the circumstances of the case, including in particular where the prospective customer—
(a)appears unclear about the intended use of the substance,
(b)appears unfamiliar with the intended use of the substance or cannot explain it plausibly,
(c)intends to buy substances in quantities, combinations or concentrations uncommon for private use,
(d)is unwilling to provide proof of identity or place of residence, or
(e)insists on using unusual methods of payment, including large amounts of cash.”
Evidence at the inquest suggested that it would not be possible for a mail order business to make such checks.
Reference during the inquest was made to eBay’s Hazardous Materials Policy and it was seen that Reportable Poisons in concentrated form were not included in the list of prohibited items.
” Open source report × Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Inability of mail order businesses to make suspicious-transaction checks
Wider context from the report “████████ is a reportable substance under the Poisons Act 1972. A supplier of the substance has a statutory duty to report any suspicious transaction. The statute goes on to give guidance so as to determine what might be a suspicious transaction.
Section 3C (4) reads “In deciding whether there are reasonable grounds for suspecting such a thing, regard must be had to all the circumstances of the case, including in particular where the prospective customer—
(a)appears unclear about the intended use of the substance,
(b)appears unfamiliar with the intended use of the substance or cannot explain it plausibly,
(c)intends to buy substances in quantities, combinations or concentrations uncommon for private use,
(d)is unwilling to provide proof of identity or place of residence, or
(e)insists on using unusual methods of payment, including large amounts of cash.”
Evidence at the inquest suggested that it would not be possible for a mail order business to make such checks.
Reference during the inquest was made to eBay’s Hazardous Materials Policy and it was seen that Reportable Poisons in concentrated form were not included in the list of prohibited items.
” Open source report
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Source evidence
How this respondent action was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Update the Hazardous Materials Policy to explicitly prohibit reportable poisons.
Verbatim wording from the response “This prohibition encompasses all poisons, including those classified as a 'reportable poison'. This includes ████████ in its pure form, as well as other dangerous items. Further information is also provided to users via a link to the Home Office site towards the end of the policy. We acknowledge however that the explicit inclusion of 'reportable poison' within our policy's general prohibition on poisons may not have been clear, despite them being prohibited on the site. In order to drive clarity, we have updated our policy to now explicitly refer to reportable poisons as being prohibited. This update has already been made and is visible in the policy linked to above. For ease of reference, it now states:” Source location Response from Ebay
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Source evidence
How this respondent action was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Strengthen enforcement using block-filter algorithms, AI-supported monitoring and action against sellers listing prohibited items.
Verbatim wording from the response “Enforcement
The prohibition of ████████ in its pure form is not a new addition. It has been prohibited on eBay, in the UK and in other countries where eBay operates, for several years. eBay has proactive measures, including advanced block filter algorithms and AI-supported monitoring, dedicated to identifying and removing unsafe listings. In 2025 for example, 98.2% of prohibited listings globally (which encompasses a wide variety of prohibited items) were blocked at the point of listing creation and did not appear on the eBay marketplace.” Source location Response from Ebay
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Source evidence
How this respondent position was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Reportable poisons were already covered by the existing prohibition, although their explicit inclusion was not sufficiently clear.
Verbatim wording from the response “eBay's Hazardous Materials Policy explicitly prohibits the sale of poisons. It states at the start:” Source location Response from Ebay
Open published response
4 Jan 2021 Linda Joan Gillchrest · Prevention of Future Deaths report Surrey
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Concerns raised 3 Failure to restrict purchase of lethal quantities from UK websites View source Failure to restrict online purchase of publications containing detailed instructions to end a human life View source Lack of protection for vulnerable people before online purchases View source
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
No linked response statements No action or position from this recipient is clearly linked to the concerns in this report.
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AI-generated summary
Linda Joan Gillchrest · Prevention of Future Deaths report
This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.
Report summary
Linda Joan Gillchrest was found dead at home on 19 July 2020 after not being seen for two days. The inquest heard that she had purchased online a publication containing detailed instructions for self-administering a fatal dose and had bought a quantity of a substance in excess of the recommended fatal dose without restriction. The principal concerns were the unrestricted online availability of such publications and lethal quantities of substances, and the lack of protection for vulnerable people before such purchases.
Read the report on judiciary.uk
× Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Failure to restrict purchase of lethal quantities from UK websites
Wider context from the report “During the course of the inquest, evidence was heard that in May 2019 Mrs Gillchrest bought an e-book online from the USA, titled ████████ from a website of the same name. The book gave very clear and precise instructions as to how to self-administer a fatal dose of ████████, including the amount required and a timeline to death. In that month, for less than £5:00, pounds, Mrs Gillchrest purchased, on the auction site ‘www.ebay.co.uk’, a quantity of ████████ that was in excess of that recommended in ████████ as being required for a fatal dose. Both purchases were made without any restriction being imposed by the sellers.
• A publication such as ████████, that contains detailed instructions as to how to end a human life, is available to be purchased online without restriction.
• ████████ is available to be purchased in lethal quantities from a UK website for less than £5:00, again without restriction.
• No protection is afforded to vulnerable people prior to them making such purchases.
Consideration should be given to whether any steps can be taken to address the above concerns.
” Open source report × Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Failure to restrict online purchase of publications containing detailed instructions to end a human life
Wider context from the report “During the course of the inquest, evidence was heard that in May 2019 Mrs Gillchrest bought an e-book online from the USA, titled ████████ from a website of the same name. The book gave very clear and precise instructions as to how to self-administer a fatal dose of ████████, including the amount required and a timeline to death. In that month, for less than £5:00, pounds, Mrs Gillchrest purchased, on the auction site ‘www.ebay.co.uk’, a quantity of ████████ that was in excess of that recommended in ████████ as being required for a fatal dose. Both purchases were made without any restriction being imposed by the sellers.
• A publication such as ████████, that contains detailed instructions as to how to end a human life, is available to be purchased online without restriction.
• ████████ is available to be purchased in lethal quantities from a UK website for less than £5:00, again without restriction.
• No protection is afforded to vulnerable people prior to them making such purchases.
Consideration should be given to whether any steps can be taken to address the above concerns.
” Open source report × Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Lack of protection for vulnerable people before online purchases
Wider context from the report “During the course of the inquest, evidence was heard that in May 2019 Mrs Gillchrest bought an e-book online from the USA, titled ████████ from a website of the same name. The book gave very clear and precise instructions as to how to self-administer a fatal dose of ████████, including the amount required and a timeline to death. In that month, for less than £5:00, pounds, Mrs Gillchrest purchased, on the auction site ‘www.ebay.co.uk’, a quantity of ████████ that was in excess of that recommended in ████████ as being required for a fatal dose. Both purchases were made without any restriction being imposed by the sellers.
• A publication such as ████████, that contains detailed instructions as to how to end a human life, is available to be purchased online without restriction.
• ████████ is available to be purchased in lethal quantities from a UK website for less than £5:00, again without restriction.
• No protection is afforded to vulnerable people prior to them making such purchases.
Consideration should be given to whether any steps can be taken to address the above concerns.
” Open source report
Concerns raised 2 Unrestricted availability of a lethal substance as a meat preservative View source Active promotion of a particular method of death by suicide View source
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
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AI-generated summary
Jason THOMPSON · Prevention of Future Deaths report
This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.
Report summary
Jason THOMPSON, a 49-year-old man, collapsed at home after taking a quantity of a substance and died shortly afterwards in Darlington Memorial Hospital on 8 February 2020. The concerns included the ready availability of a lethal substance, including through a popular online platform, and material allegedly describing its use to commit suicide and potentially promoting that method.
Read the report on judiciary.uk
× Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Unrestricted availability of a lethal substance as a meat preservative
Wider context from the report “‘████████ is used to preserve and cure meat, to which it imparts a pink-red colour. The minimum lethal dose is ████████. ████████ can be readily bought via the ████████. For example, it is possibly to buy up to ████████ for a few pounds on ████████, without restriction. A chapter from Salts’, available ████████, describes the use of ████████ to commit suicide and compares it with ████████ and ████████.”
(1) ████████ may be actively promoting a particular method of death by suicide and hence breaking the criminal law by assisting suicide.
(2) That such a lethal substance ████████ should be so freely available on a popular ████████ ████████, sold by a company (████████) under the guise of being a meat preservative.
” Open source report × Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below. The report was sent to Ebay (UK) Limited; that does not assign responsibility.
PFD Monitor interpretation Active promotion of a particular method of death by suicide
Wider context from the report “‘████████ is used to preserve and cure meat, to which it imparts a pink-red colour. The minimum lethal dose is ████████. ████████ can be readily bought via the ████████. For example, it is possibly to buy up to ████████ for a few pounds on ████████, without restriction. A chapter from Salts’, available ████████, describes the use of ████████ to commit suicide and compares it with ████████ and ████████.”
(1) ████████ may be actively promoting a particular method of death by suicide and hence breaking the criminal law by assisting suicide.
(2) That such a lethal substance ████████ should be so freely available on a popular ████████ ████████, sold by a company (████████) under the guise of being a meat preservative.
” Open source report
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Source evidence
How this respondent action was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Prohibit the global sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical.
Verbatim wording from the response “By way of background, in 2019 eBay took the voluntary decision to prohibit globally the sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical, after receiving a report of potential use of the substance for suicide attempts. In addition to updating our prohibited items policy, eBay updated its filters, which are used to help detect and prevent the listing for sale of this chemical.” Source location 2020-0246-Response-from-Ebay-UK-Ltd-Redacted.pdf
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Source evidence
How this respondent action was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Continue working with relevant authorities to monitor developments and rigorously enforce the sodium nitrite prohibition.
Verbatim wording from the response “However, please be assured that we will continue to work with the relevant authorities to keep abreast of developments and ensure that our policy prohibiting the sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical will continue to be enforced rigorously. As you will be aware, sodium nitrite in its pure form is still available for sale on the internet via other websites and platforms. We would therefore support stricter regulations restricting the online sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical in its pure form via the internet in order to prevent further such tragic cases in the future.” Source location 2020-0246-Response-from-Ebay-UK-Ltd-Redacted.pdf
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Source evidence
How this respondent action was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Improve and continuously update filters and blocking algorithms to detect and prevent sodium nitrite listings.
Verbatim wording from the response “By way of background, in 2019 eBay took the voluntary decision to prohibit globally the sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical, after receiving a report of potential use of the substance for suicide attempts. In addition to updating our prohibited items policy, eBay updated its filters, which are used to help detect and prevent the listing for sale of this chemical.” Source location 2020-0246-Response-from-Ebay-UK-Ltd-Redacted.pdf
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Source evidence
How this respondent position was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation Curing salts may continue to be sold because their low sodium nitrite content and emetic effects make harmful ingestion less likely.
Verbatim wording from the response “It is worth clarifying that sodium nitrite does occur as a legal ingredient in other products, such as meat curing salts. These were highlighted in recent press articles as being available on eBay. The amount of sodium nitrite in such products, at about 6%, is a small proportion of the overall product compared to the amount of sodium chloride, which is itself injurious to health if consumed in large quantities. Furthermore, the emetic effects of sodium chloride means that ingesting large amounts of curing salts is likely to make an individual vomit. Therefore, after taking advice, we have concluded that curing salts can continue to be sold on the site.” Source location 2020-0246-Response-from-Ebay-UK-Ltd-Redacted.pdf
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Information checked against published PFD reports and official responses · Data reviewed 7 Sep 2026 · About data quality and limitations