People across Lincolnshire are being reminded to think about safety when charging their electricals such as phones and laptops

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue are issuing a stark reminder to people to think about safety when charging electrical items like phones and laptops.

The service say last year electrical appliances made up around 10% of all of the fires they attended - a further 4% was directly related to mains electricals.

Dan Moss is the Area Manager for Prevention and Protection in the county, and tells us more:

"They are a significant issue, to be fair and I think it's one of those that we're trying to generally push out those safety messages you know."

"One issue is when people go to bed at night, and think, well 'I'm going to bed, I'll put my phone on charge' but we're trying to ask people not to do that."

"We recognise it's the easiest time, and probably the most convenient, but actually then we need people to recognise everybody's asleep, everybody's slower to react."

Iphones on charge can generate heat

"And so we're asking people to only charge appliances using items that have been supplied by manufacturers, and only to do that when you're awake, when you're kind of more mobile, more agile and more aware of these things, plus to make sure that smoke detection devices are in place and working.

"Mobile phones is a really good one and we know how people are can be tied to their phones and and they like to have them at the side."

"There's a tendency to chuck them on the bed in the night time whilst they're charging - but actually whilst they're on the beds, the devices might generate some heat, and if they're around those kind of combustible items as well, there's no way for the phone to circulate it and get rid of that heat.

There are steps you can take to reduce the risk

"We work very closely with our trading standard colleagues as well, so we do some preventative work, and we're also trying to then raise the awareness of lithium ion batteries and recognise that emerging risk."

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue warn how electricity can kill or injure people and cause damage to property.

In the last year to March, data shows 28 people were injured in some way by accidental primary fires caused by electricals.

But there are steps you can take to reduce the risk of electrical accidents in your home.

For cables and plugs:

• do not overload sockets with too many appliances
• keep an eye out for fraying power leads
• switch off and unplug appliances when not in use, unless designed to stay on
• never charge or place electrical equipment under pillows or blankets

To avoid house fires due to electrical appliances:

• register your appliances
• make sure your electrical appliances are not near water
• service them once a year
• do not leave washing machines, tumble dryers or dishwashers on when you are out or asleep
• beware of fake products as they may not meet safety requirements

For more electrical home safety advice, visit the Electrical Safety First website.

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