It’s shocking to think that nearly six years on from the Grenfell Tower tragedy this June – a fire caused by a faulty fridge-freezer – dangerous electrical goods are still being sold freely on multiple online marketplaces across the UK.
This issue has been thrust into the spotlight by an investigation by the renowned British consumer protection group Which?. They demonstrated how easy it is to bypass multiple marketplace safety checks by successfully listing an illegal and dangerous electrical heater for sale.
The problem is so severe that Which? is joining forces with UK safety groups to push for online marketplaces to be held legally responsible for preventing sales of dangerous electrical devices by making it a criminal act.
With the looming threat of another Grenfell-like tragedy still hanging over us, we can’t afford to sit back and wait for the law to finally change while lives remain at risk. And this isn’t just a UK issue either – it’s a global crisis. For now, the only guaranteed way to prevent these fires is to stop them at the socket source.
Trusted goods: safe today, deadly tomorrow
While the Which? campaign to stop the sale of unsafe electrical goods is commendable, it doesn’t address the risk of fires caused by products that begin as safe but become faulty over time.
According to the official UK government inquiry, this was what caused the Grenfell Tower fire. Just before 01:00 on June 14, 2017, a faulty fridge-freezer caught fire in a fourth-floor apartment of this large, 23-storey residential building in London.
The fire quickly engulfed the building and was further accelerated by controversial flammable cladding attached to the outside of the building. By about 02:00 the fire was out of control and could not be stopped.
Despite the best efforts of hundreds of fire fighters, the fire would go on to burn for 24 hours and take 72 lives under the most horrific circumstances.
Tragically, this is a template story seen across the world – faulty appliances, inadequate safety measures, and poor regulations combine to create devastating fires with catastrophic loss of life.
In fact, electrical malfunction fires are the deadliest form of residential fire. In the EU, electrically induced fires cause approximately 1200 fatalities a year. And around €6.25 billion in property damage.
It is my observation that incidents like these often expose deeper systemic failures that go far beyond a single tragic event. They shine a harsh light on the global challenges we face in enforcing stricter safety standards and implementing effective fire prevention measures.
The bottom line: if it plugs in, it’s a risk
In recent years, there has been a concerning rise in fires linked to everyday appliances and batteries. Cables, chargers, phones, laptops, e-scooters, and even air fryers have all been flagged as major fire risks due to issues like overheating and electrical faults. Let’s also not forget tumble dryers, another known ticking time bomb in our homes, often caused by lint build-up or malfunctioning heating elements.
Today, we also rely on so many electrical devices that it’s common to find overloaded sockets and extension leads throughout homes. Many people don’t realize that different appliances have different power requirements. Plugging too many high-power devices into one extension lead can overload it, significantly increasing the risk of fire.
As if the risks weren’t already high enough, most fire-related deaths occur while people are asleep. According to the UK Home Office’s ‘Detailed Analysis of Fires Attended by Fire and Rescue Services in England’ report for the year ending March 2024, the most dangerous time of day is between 22:00 and 23:00 at night.
The core issue is that we are missing the critical opportunity to prevent electrical fires before they start. By the time the fire becomes noticeable – such as when a smoke alarm goes off – it’s often already too late to prevent it from spreading.
Say hello to the Ci smart socket: say goodbye to electrical fires
At Ci, we’ve developed a preventative smart power socket range designed to take immediate action when a fault is detected. Each Ci smart socket continuously monitors for thermal or electrical overloads, automatically shutting off any connected devices before they can catch fire. It also alerts you to the fault in real time, helping prevent potential disasters before they happen.
The potential applications for this smart socket technology go far beyond just residential homes. It could play a crucial role in enhancing safety across a variety of industries, including the EV car charging market, power utilities, distribution centres, data centres, and all commercial properties, providing peace of mind in environments where electrical safety is paramount.
Another key benefit of the Ci smart socket is its ability to reduce energy consumption. Around 10% of energy consumed by electrical devices comes from them being left on standby. Ci smart sockets help tackle this by completely shutting off all connected devices when not in use, ensuring energy is only consumed when needed.
The Ci smart socket is also designed with user-friendly communication in mind, featuring cleverly engineered LED lights built into the socket switches. These lights provide clear visual alerts: they flash yellow when an overcurrent is detected, red for thermal overloads, and even blue if a nearby water leak is detected. This intuitive design ensures users are promptly notified of any issues, helping them act before problems escalate.
Above all, the Ci smart socket is committed to making preventable electrical fires a thing of the past. While the primary focus is on saving lives, the product also delivers the added benefits of reducing energy consumption and cutting costs.
Fighting fire with connected innovation: the power to save lives
Fires don’t stop. In the UK, there were 73 domestic fires every day in the year ending March 2023. In the US, that number skyrockets to 1,025 residential fires daily in 2022.
Most of these fires are caused by electrical malfunction, and these fires are killing people and destroying lives every single day, in every country around the world.
The situation is being exacerbated by an alarming rise in counterfeit, substandard electrical goods that have managed to bypass legislative legal safety standards and enter the consumer electronics supply chain.
Consumers are unknowingly buying these dangerous goods, thinking they are legitimate and safe. Not realising that they could be bringing a potentially fatal fire threat into their homes.
This is exactly what Which? is working to eliminate on the supply side. However, my concern is that this could be a prolonged battle, and faulty or illegal electrical goods are unlikely to vanish overnight. Perhaps it’s time to consider legislation for fail-safe sockets – designs that make it far more difficult, if not impossible, for connected devices to catch fire.
While we may not be able to control the influx of malfunctioning electrical goods into homes, we can control the sockets they are plugged into. By doing so, we have the power to save lives.
Too many lives have already been lost, and far too many more will continue to be at risk if nothing is done. I believe our technology has the power to eliminate this problem for good. It’s time to shift public and government perception, to understand that smart power sockets aren’t just a luxury –they’re a lifesaver.
This issue cannot be left to chance. I hope my legacy will be that I played a part in ensuring that one day, every power socket worldwide is made smart, protecting lives and preventing tragedies.
Let Ci enhance the safety of your building today. Contact us now to discover how our solutions can make a difference.
