New Mobile Collections Reach More People With Dangerous Electric Blankets
By making it easier for older people with mobility problems to have their electric blankets tested, Warwickshire County Council Trading Standards Service has succeeded in removing larger numbers of dangerous electric blankets from people’s homes, and increased the total number of blankets submitted for testing.
Mark Ryder, Head of Warwickshire County Council Trading Standards Service said:
“This year, in partnership with carers, meals on wheels and others who have daily contact with elderly people who find it difficult to get out and about, we were able to offer a collection service for those people who would have struggled to get their electric blanket to a test centre.
By doing so, we have been able to remove more dangerous electric blankets from circulation than we would have previously hoped to do.
In total we identified and destroyed 141 dangerous electric blankets, and in doing so helped to prevent potential house fires.”
Almost 4 in every 10 blankets collected direct from the homes of older people failed tests, compared in most cases with failure rate of around a quarter or less for blankets that had been taken by their owners to test centres.
Many blankets failed because they had become very worn, revealing the electrical elements inside, or because they were so old they did not have overheat protection, built in to newer blankets to prevent them from over heating and catching fire.
The collection service is a new initiative that has enabled Warwickshire Trading Standards to provide older people who have mobility problems or who live in smaller and more isolated communities the same opportunity to have their blankets tested as those residing in more urban areas.
In total 513 electric blankets were tested, an increase of 145 blankets on 2006. 372 passed and 141 failed. With their owners permission, failed blankets were destroyed and their owners offered discount vouchers towards the cost of a new electric blanket.
Warwickshire Trading Standards would like to thank Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service and Warwickshire Library and Information Service for their support in providing venues for blanket testing.
Those that were unable to take advantage of the testing programme can check their own blankets by looking for the following warning signs:
the fabric is worn or frayed
there are scorch marks anywhere
the tie tapes are damaged or missing
the flex is worn or damaged
any connections are loose
Remember older blankets in regular use are much more likely to have one or more of the above faults.
Consumers requiring further information on how to store and check their electric blanket can visit http://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/tradingstandards
Electric Blanket Test Results 2007
Venue
Passed
Failed
Total
Trading Standards (Collections) –27/9/2007
58
(61%)
37
(39%)
95
(100%)
Nuneaton Fire Station –1/10/2007
64
(79%)
17
(21%)
81
(100%)
Leamington Town Hall – 2/10/2007
67
(81%)
16
(19%)
83
(100%)
Kenilworth Library – 3/10/2007
44
(66%)
23
(34%)
67
(100%)
Rugby Library – 4/10/2007
69
(75%)
23
(25%)
92
(100%)
Stratford Pop-in-Centre – 5/10/2007
70
(74%)
25
(26%)
95
(100%)
TOTAL
372
(73%)
141
(27%)
513
(100%)