The Electrical Safety Council has carried out research that has indicated that a large number of fires involving domestic appliances in the home are actually caused by misuse and misinstallation.
The report goes on to detail that, according to the research, that appliance misuse is now the top cause of house fires and that people seem oblivious to the dangers that they often put themselves in.
This of course comes as little surprise to us as we see many appliances installed incorrectly as well as used incorrectly or just out and out abused. In our research, in the first few month of ownership some 80%+ of all reported service calls were down to appliances not being correctly installed or were caused by customer error. The biggest single cause of all service calls when appliances are still under warranty are the owners themselves.
Fires we have seen caused for the reasons in the press release below but also we would point out the following top causes of fires or near fire experiences with appliances:
- Failure to clean tumble dryer filter
- Drying inappropriate items in a tumble dryer
- Blocking fridge, freezer and fridge freezer ventilation
- Installation in unsuitable conditions where condensation can form on electrical and electronic components
- Inability to read instructions!!
Of course in our experience users will often, in the first instance blame the appliance as they cannot recognise that they may be and, likely are at fault in some way. The biggest danger of course is that most of these types of issues and problems that track back to misuse or installation issues will not be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty and people can either be charged for the rectification work or, they can face having to buy another appliance.
We would urge people to take care when installing and using their kitchen appliances as it could save you a fortune as well as a heap of grief not to mention the risk of fire.
To have appliances installed correctly please use our engineer search facility as many of the repairers also carry out appliance installations and can offer you advice and help both directly and in our forums.
New research from the Electrical Safety Council shows an alarming rise in fires caused by the misuse of appliances in the home. Appliance misuse is already the top cause of all fires in British homes with millions of people committing everyday safety ’blunders’ without realising the risk of fire. The Charity, whose campaign is supported by the Chief Fire Officers Association, has issued guidance, top tips and a Facebook application to help combat these easily avoidable safety mistakes.
Britain’s biggest blunders [and the percentage of UK public committing them]:
- Creating a fire hazard by using the microwave as an additional surface and blocking air vents (33%)
- Increasing the risk of serious fire spreading by leaving the tumble dryer running unattended or overnight (9%)
- Blocking air vents by failing to clean behind their fridge/freezer (44%)
- Overloading adaptor sockets, causing an unsafe rise in temperature (16%)
- Leaving an electrical appliance on while unattended, only to be alerted by a burning smell (9%)
Overall, a staggering three quarters of UK adults confessed to committing at least one simple safety blunder or misuse of an electrical appliance. The Electrical Safety Council believes that there is a clear link between this lack of understanding and the surge in ‘blunder fires’.
Fires caused by misuse of appliances have increased by over a third since 2009 , despite there being an overall decline in house fires, with chip pan fires plummeting by two thirds and fires started through smoking dropping by a third . On average, fires caused by misuse of appliances kill 22 people, seriously injure about 2,500 and cost tens of millions of pounds in damage each year . In the last year alone, there were 14,700 fires of this nature. Concern is heightened by the fact that there has been a considerable increase in the number of higher risk appliances in our homes – since 2004, the number of microwaves has increased by 1,457,000 and tumble dryers by 2,148,000 .
Despite the increasing risk to homes, many UK adults do not have adequate protection from electrical fires; less than half (49%) have a Residual Current Device (RCD) in their fusebox, a vital safety device which minimises the risk of fire by cutting off the power in the event of a fault. However, almost four out of five (79%) believe that their homes are electrically safe.
Simple steps to safety
To help the public test their own knowledge and become more aware of fire safety blunders, the ESC has created a Fire Blunders game, hosted on Facebook, which helps identify mistakes and improve safety. People can also download the free ‘Home Electrical Safety Check’ Smartphone app, a simple tool to check homes for electrical danger, or visit the ESC’s dedicated webpage esc.org.uk/homesafety, which contains top tips for avoiding simple blunders.
Phil Buckle, Director General of the Electrical Safety Council said: “People think that they are behaving safely but the majority of people we surveyed had put themselves at risk by unknowingly making a safety blunder. Fires caused by misuse of appliances – the vast majority of which are electrical – are so easy to prevent but they will keep increasing unless people understand the simple things that can and do cause fires.
“Today we are issuing a warning to consumers: make sure you’re informed about electrical safety to avoid the increasing risk of injury or death by electrical fire. Most accidents are preventable and the ESC is here to help you. Protect yourself, your home and your family by following our simple tips, installing RCD protection in your fuse box or testing your current knowledge in our Facebook blunder quiz.”
Vij Randeniya, President of the Chief Fire Officers Association said: “We support the ESC’s campaign and the partnership with local Fire and Rescue Services around the country. A house fire can have devastating and long term effects, not only losing belongings, memories and possibly lives, but also in terms of mental scars and trauma. Thankfully, many fires can be prevented by taking a few simple safety steps, but the ESC’s research has exposed a shocking lack of public awareness in this area.”
To learn how to protect yourself, your home and your family from house fires take the Facebook Blunder quiz by searching ‘Electrical Safety Council’ on Facebook, or follow our top tips on esc.org.uk/homesafety