Electrical Safety First welcomes product recall system review
Roughly one in seven homes contains a faulty household appliance that could cause a fire or electrical shock, and over the past four years, manufacturers have tried to recall around four million defective devices and electrical goods. Yet as many as 90% remain in UK homes because companies failed to alert families or customers ignored their warnings, according to Electrical Safety First, which has welcomed a review of the product recall system. James Hunt reports:
Since the start of 2011, there have been 228 recall notices for electrical products, including seven types of fridges, four washing machines and seven hairdryers. Indeed, Electrical Safety First says that electrical appliances are the third most frequently notified product group when looking at recalls.
However, despite that fact that around 50% of all accidental domestic fires in the UK are caused by electricity, with the vast majority attributed to electrical appliances, only 10 - 20% of recalled products are ever returned or repaired.
This is why Electrical Safety First - which has long been well aware of the need to improve consumer awareness of, and response to, recalls - has welcomed the review of the UK product recall system. However, the organisation says it is disappointed that its proposed amendments have not entered recommendations for the Consumer Rights Bill.
The amendment proposed by Electrical Safety First was intended to increase transparency by requiring manufacturers, retailers and distributors to provide specific details. These would include the number of people affected by a recalled item - either through injury or damage to property. Another proposal by Electrical Safety First was for detailed information about a recalled item to be displayed on both the website of the relevant government department and the enforcement agencies involved.
Commenting on the Consumer Rights Bill, which has just concluded its Report Stage in the House of Lords, Phil Buckle, director general of Electrical Safety First, said: “The Consumer Rights Bill is the most radical shake-up of consumer legislation to take place in three decades. We were disappointed that our proposed amendment – which ‘closed the gap’ between faults that manufacturers and suppliers of electrical goods know about and what consumers are aware of – has not been incorporated into the Bill.
“However, we are delighted that our concerns have been noted and that a review of the product recall system will now take place.”
He continued: “As Electrical Safety First’s research has clearly shown, our complex and self-regulated product recall system has left many unsafe products in people’s homes.
“So we wholeheartedly support the government’s proposed review of the system, which has just been announced by Baroness Neville-Rolfe. And we are pleased that the issues regarding product recall during the passage of the Consumer Rights Bill will now be addressed,” said Phil Buckle.
More about product recalls
Electrical problems are most commonly found in adaptors and chargers, with 72 types recalled over the past four years, but other high-risk products include certain type of lamp and light fittings, fridge freezers and hairdryers. For example, Asda had to recall around 300,000 toasters as a precaution against electric shocks, while in 2013, nearly half a million potentially dangerous Bosch dishwashers sold between 1999 and 2005 were still being used because the owners couldn’t be traced.
Because of such issues, Electrical Safety First produced a report to help identify the best format and communication channels for recall, and to help manufacturers and retailers understand what will motivate consumers to act. The report says that:
- 77% would respond to a recall notice if they had a better understanding of the dangers.
- A fifth would respond to a notice for a large product rather than a small one, yet we found the electrical items most reported as faulty or dangerous are smaller ones such as chargers, hairdryers, toasters and kettles
- People don't want their data to be used for marketing purposes. 61% said they would be more likely to register products if they were assured their details would not be used for marketing.
Electrical Safety First says that householders who find that they are in possession of a recalled product, the notification should provide details of what to do next. If no details are shown, they should contact either the seller or Citizens Advice (helpline 08454 04 05 06
08454 04 05 06). And if the product concerned came from a company based inside the EU, contact the UK European Consumer Centre for more details.
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