Urgent warning to Britons over popular electronics that could EXPLODE at any time: Investigation uncovers 26 faulty products being sold online – including BBQs, fairy lights, and paddling pool heaters

Britons have been issued an urgent warning to steer clear of several popular outdoor electronics which could explode at any time.

From BBQs and pool heaters to extension cables and outdoor lighting, new evidence suggests common appliances could be putting you at serious risk.

An investigation by Electrical Safety First found that 96 per cent of outdoor electrical products tested failed basic safety tests.

One immersion heater designed to warm children’s paddling pools even burst into flames when left running during testing.

Lesley Redd, chief executive of Electrical Safety First, said: ‘Consumers are being duped into thinking products are safe for outdoor use, when in reality many of them pose a severe risk.’

An investigation by Electrical Safety Now found that 96 per cent of outdoor electronics tested were not safe, including this children’s paddling pool heater which burst into flames while testing

Electrical Safety First tested 26 common outdoor electrical products which were available for purchase from third-party sellers on major online marketplaces including Temu, Amazon Marketplace, eBay, Wish and AliExpress.

Over a year of investigation as part of the ‘Don’t be Electricked’ campaign, the researchers found that all but one of these devices failed at least one electrical safety test.

Of those tested, 96 per cent posed a risk of electrical shock to their users, while 46 per cent had a risk of electrical shock and starting a fire.

Popular items such as electric barbeques were found to pose a risk of electrocution and fire, having been fitted with substandard plugs and counterfeit fuses.

The charity found that every pool heater tested failed to keep water out of electronic components and so could give users a severe electrical shock if handled while wet 

The biggest issue was that these devices were sold as suitable for outdoor use but, in reality, were not sufficiently insulated against the elements.

Extension leads marketed as waterproof could not stop water seeping into their components.

If a user were to pick up one of these leads while they were wet, they would be at a serious risk of receiving a dangerous electric shock.

In total, 81 per cent of the electrical devices tested failed water ingress tests that are critical for electrical safety – a massive issue for devices meant to be left outside during the wet British summer.

Faulty plugs and heated devices like electric blankets can lead to devastating fires like the one that gutted a house in Sydney earlier this year 

Some outdoor grills were sold with faulty plugs (pictured) and counterfeit fuses which created a risk of fire and electric shocks 

Worryingly, the most problematic of all the devices tested were outdoor lighting and children’s paddling pool heaters.

Overall, 89 per cent of the festoon lights tested failed while all of the pool heaters failed water ingress safety tests.

During testing, one of the children’s pool heaters even burst into flames when the device was turned on while not submerged.

Ms Rudd says: ‘These products are falling short of basic safety standards, putting consumers in danger.

‘It is not acceptable that shoppers are at risk from such prevalent dangers when shopping online.’

Outdoor lighting (pictured) proved to be particularly problematic as 83 per cent failed to keep water out despite being designed to hang outside during the wet British summer  

In other instances, cheap counterfeit goods sold on online marketplaces have triggered housefires. This was the case in January this year when a cheap tablet device burst into flames and destroyed a home in Greenrock, Scotland 

The charity draws attention to the fact that all of the electronics tested were easily purchased from major online retailers under the impression that they are safe for outdoor use.

After being contacted by Electrical Safety First, all of the products tested have now been removed from their online marketplaces and are no longer available for sale. 

A Temu spokesperson added: ‘We require proper documentation, conduct spot checks, and continuously monitor our platform to address any issues promptly, ensuring consumers can shop with confidence.’

A Wish spokesperson said: ‘It’s clear that the products identified do not comply with those standards, so we acted quickly to remove them.

‘The listing merchants have also been contacted to remind them of the importance of complying with product safety rules.’

A spokesperson for Amazon also said that all of the items had been removed and were ‘pending further investigation.

The spokesperson added: ‘We require all products offered in our store to comply with applicable laws and regulations and we monitor for product safety concerns.’

eBay and AliExpress have also been contacted for a response.

Electrical Safety First claims that customers are being falsely sold products like outdoor grills (left) and extension cables (right) under the impression that they are outdoor safe. This false impression could lead to fires and potentially lethal electric shocks 

Lithium batteries in electrical goods can also lead to dangerous fires if faults lead them to break. In this picture a house fire is triggered after a dog bites into a battery  

However, the charity is concerned about what it calls the ‘whack-a-mole effect’ whereby a similar or identical product quickly replaces the one that was removed.

To address this issue, Electrical Safety First is calling for the Government to impose ‘strong and robust new laws’ which would impose legal obligations on online marketplaces.

According to the charity, these laws should legally force marketplaces to take reasonable steps to ensure the products they host are safe.

Ms Rudd says: ‘We are warning shoppers that just because something is sold as ‘outdoor safe’ this does not guarantee the product meets the necessary safety standards to be used outside safely.

‘We urge people to be cautious and to stick to reputable high street retailers where you can shop with more confidence that the product you’re buying is safe.’