Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom – June 14, 2019 / BWAR /
In the UK, you’re required to register the electrical appliances in your home. This includes products such as tumble dryers, refrigerators, dishwashers, freezers, and so on. These products must be registered as it helps prevent issues down the line – which could compromise your safety.
Once an electronic device has been registered, the manufacturer is notified. This allows them to contact you if they experience problems with the device. Therefore, they can safely recall any faulty electronics before they cause you harm.
Unfortunately, the average success rate of product recalls for electric appliances is just 10-20% in the UK. This means that anywhere between 80-90% of people are still holding onto products that need to be recalled. As such, this presents lots of potential risks for you and your family. In essence, there could potentially be a silent killer lurking in your home – in the form of an unregistered electronic appliance.
Registered Products Get Recalled Safely
If you have an appliance that’s been recalled, then the manufacturer will contact you directly. They provide information on what needs to be done, so you can safely remove the appliance from your home, and receive a new one. All of this is only possible if the device has been registered.
When an appliance isn’t registered, then none of this happens. It falls on the owner of the product to check that it needs to be recalled. As you can imagine, this is almost impossible for you to do. The only chance of you knowing a product has to be recalled is if you see any mention of it online. Otherwise, you have to keep checking the Electrical Safety First product recalls page to see if any of your appliances are faulty and must be recalled.
Unregistered Electrical Appliances Can Put Your Life At Risk
Research suggests there was 266 electrical product recalls in the last six years. This figure might not sound too drastic, but factor in how many products a manufacturer will produce. For every product that gets recalled, there will likely be hundreds of thousands of units out in UK homes and properties. So, in reality, there are potentially millions of hazardous electrical items out there right now.
The main danger of not registering these items is that they can put your life at risk. Not only that, but they put other people’s lives at risk as well. Electrical products have electrical currents surging through them. All it takes is one fault to cause a fatality in your home. You may touch a product without realising anything is wrong, and this sends an electric shock through your body that could potentially take your life.
Of course, this is the worst-case scenario. But, for products like tumble dryers, fridges, and dishwashers, the threat of death is very much real. Large products like these depend on large electrical currents to power them. However, there are plenty of smaller products that still present a risk as well. Phone chargers could be faulty, and they can cause small electric shocks that injure you. While the chances of death aren’t as high, you will still suffer from painful injuries. Unregistered Electrical Products Can Cause Fires
Failing to register electrical products won’t just put you at risk of death and injury. Statistically speaking, 15,432 fires were caused by electricity in 2015/16 throughout England. This equates to approximately 54.4% of all fires in the country. The same statistics also found that 80.5% of these fires were caused by appliances and products.
The question is; how many of these fires could’ve been prevented had the electrical products been registered. If more people registered their electrical appliances, then more people would be notified of the product recalls. All it takes is a spark from a faulty piece of equipment to start a fire. Electrical fires are notoriously hard to contain, meaning they spread very quickly.
Consequently, not registering your devices means you put your home at risk of electrical fires. This could cause you harm, but it could also destroy your property. Fires wreak havoc when they spread, and they can destroy everything you own. Sentimental items can be burned and ruined, along with expensive furniture and other things too. The cost of repairing fire damage is very high as well, which puts more emphasis on the need to register electrical appliances to lower the risk of fires in your home.
Registering Your Electrical Products Can Save Lives
It’s clear that registering your electrical products can help you save lives. You can save your own life, along with the lives of anyone else in your home. Additionally, you can save the lives of people living in the same building as you – if you live in an apartment block.
As mentioned earlier, only around 10-20% of product recalls are successful. There’s a decent chance that you own an electrical product that should be sent back, but you have no way of knowing. Without registering, manufacturers have no way of getting in touch with you. Particularly if you buy their products through a third-party vendor. They don’t know that you’ve got their appliance, so they won’t contact you if a fault arises and recall is required.
It’s Easy To Register Your Electrical Products
The threat that comes from not registering your electrical products is very high. The worst thing is, it’s easy to register any product you buy. It won’t cost a penny, and it usually only takes a few minutes. The best way to do this is by heading to the manufacturer’s website. Once there, look for a menu that’s labelled ‘Product Registration’ – it’s usually found at the bottom of the homepage under the support heading.
If you can’t find it, then search for the manufacturer’s name and product registration in Google. This should point you in the right direction. Usually, all you need is the product’s model, the serial number, and the date of purchase. It makes sense to do this as soon as you buy a new electrical product, so you have all the information close to hand.
Don’t let a silent killer lurk in your house; register your electrical products today, and you can save lives and prevent disasters.
Address
Unit 4 Ridge House Ridge House Drive, Festival Park, Hanley, Stoke On Trent, Staffordshire, England, ST1 5SJ
Call 01782 216911
Email info@smdelectrical.co.uk
Contact Information:
SMD Electrical Contractors Ltd
Unit 4 Ridge House Ridge House Drive Festival Park
Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire ST1 5SJ
United Kingdom
Luke Robinson
+44 1782 216911
https://www.smdelectrical.co.uk