Yahoo Finance Half of all fridges on sale in UK 'pose a fire risk', says Which?
Manufacturers must stop making fridges and freezers with potentially flammable plastic backs, consumer champion Which? has demanded.
According to research by Which? there are at least 236 such models on sale – nearly half the market.
The watchdog has written to manufacturers to urge them to stop using non-flame-retardant backing on the appliances and described the current British standard on cold appliances as ‘deficient and inadequate’.
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Which? also said consumers should not consider buying a fridge, fridge-freezer or freezer that had one these plastic backs.
“People who already have one of these models in their homes shouldn’t be alarmed, but our advice is that no-one should purchase one from new,” said Alex Neill, managing director of Which? Home and Product Services.
“Manufacturers must immediately stop making fridges, freezers and fridge freezers to a standard that they know is clearly deficient and inadequate, and could potentially be putting people’s lives at risk.
“This once again shows that the UK’s product safety regime is simply not fit for purpose and the government can no longer continue to allow it to fail.”
Evidence from the London fire brigade has suggested that the risk of a fire spreading is greater with non-flame-retardant plastic-backed models.
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The recent Grenfell Tower fire disaster is believed to have started with a Hotpoint fridge-freezer – although tests are ongoing to establish whether it had a plastic back.
However, Which? stresses that refrigerator fires are rare. Its own July 2015 research into government fire data showed that 7% of fires caused by faulty appliances were caused by fridge freezers, fridges or freezers.
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It has updated its fridge freezer, fridge and freezer reviews to indicate what the backing material of each appliance is, and whether it is non-flame retardant.
In total, Which? has stopped recommending almost 240 products, dozens of which were previously Best Buys.
The updated list can be found here.
