Christmas Fairy Light Safety

This site is more about important safety information than style so no apologies for it looking a bit bland.

thepat|man and Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service

thepat|man in association with Derbyshire Fire and Rescue service's community safety team offer the public free Christmas Fairy Light safety inspections and tests. This year's event will be at Nottingham Road Fire Station on 28th November 2009 between 10.00am and 5.00pm.

Christmas Fairy Lights Safety Checks 2009

thepat|man and Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service team up for this year's Christmas Fairy Light Safety checks.


After this year's successful Electric Blanket safety checks we are going to offer the same sort of service for Christmas Fairy Lights. However we expect the failure rate to be much higher than for the blankets as the first part of the inspection will be of Marks and Cerification to show compliance with British and European Safety Standards. On the electric blankets this information is printed on a piece of fabric wich is sewn into the structure of the blanket and is difficult to remove. This is the reason so many are left intact and can be checked.

With Christmas Fairy Lights the information is on a piece of plastic or card and is wrapped around the flex. It is large and unsightly and it is likely to be removed prior to use. Unfortunately one this information is gone the lights will fall at the first hurdle, regardless of whether they are actually dangerous or not. This is because there is no way to distinguish between lights that have been manufactured to high safety standards and those that are "Grey imports" from goodness knows where, or even counterfeit goods.

This is a screening service only. No items will be repaired and we have no replacement lamps.


Inspection & Test checklist

You can save time and a journey by having a look at this checklist. If you find an item where your lights don't comply then they will not be passed as safe to use.

  • We will be looking to check that the item complies with British or European standards by Mark or Certification.
  • We will visually inspect the item for any damage.
  • We will look for one of the lamps to be a fuse lamp.
  • We will look at the electrical class of the item and test accordingly.
  • We will check to see if the item functions as expected.


Those checks in detail

We will be looking to check that the item complies with British or European standards by Mark or Certification.


The main marks we will be looking for are



KitemarkThe BSI Kitemark.










BEAB markThe BEAB logo.








CE markThe CE mark.








ENEC LogoThe ENEC Logo.








VDEThe VDE logo.














GSThe Geprufte Sicherheit Logo.










If none of these marks are on your lights they WILL fail.

We will visually inspect the item for any damage.

We will visually inspect the entire length of the flex, the lamp fittings and the lamps.

If there is any sign of damage to your lights they WILL fail.



We will look for one of the lamps to be a fuse lamp.

One of the lamps in your set should be a fuse lamp. Sometimes they blow and can be replaced with an ordinary lamp.

If there is no fuse lamp in your lights they WILL fail.



We will look at the electrical class of the item and test accordingly.

Double InsulatedUsually Christmas Fairy Lights are double insulated






Isolating Transformeror have a Safety Extra Low Voltage Transformer








If your item has neither of these marks it will be assumed it is class I and we will look for earth continuity.

If neither of these marks are on your lights, and there is no Protective conductor (earth) they WILL fail.



We will check to see if the item functions as expected.

If your lights do not function as you would expect them to, it is a sign that something is wrong. For example they may flash when they shouldn't or the don't flash when they should. Note that of they do not light at all that is not functioning as expected in it's own right.

If they do not light or behave unusually then your lights WILL fail.


Fairy Lights Recalls

Sometimes even major retailers have problems, Those I am aware of are reproduced here

ASDA SMARTPRICE & ASDA INDOOR CHRISTMAS LIGHTS

  • ASDA Smartprice 20 Indoor Multicolour Fairy Lights Barcode 27 42 6401 £ 1.93
  • ASDA Smartprice 40 Indoor Multicolour Fairy Lights Barcode 27 42 6340 £ 2.92
  • ASDA Smartprice 20 Indoor Multicolour Fairy Lights Barcode 27 42 6425 £ 1.21
  • ASDA Smartprice 20 Indoor Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6326 £ 1.21
  • ASDA Smartprice 80 Indoor Multicolour Fairy Lights Barcode 27 42 6463 £ 5.72
  • ASDA Smartprice 50 Indoor Twinkling Multicolour Lights Barcode 27 42 6678 £ 4.96
  • ASDA Smartprice 50 Indoor Twinkling Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6418 £ 4.96
  • ASDA Smartprice 40 Indoor Multicolour Lights Barcode 27 42 6371 £ 1.50
  • ASDA Smartprice 40 Indoor Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6319 £ 1.50
  • ASDA Smartprice 200 Indoor Multicolour Lights Barcode 27 42 6654 £ 7.96
  • ASDA Smartprice 200 Indoor Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6524 £ 7.96
  • ASDA Smartprice 100 Indoor Twinkling Multicolour Lights Barcode 27 42 6500 £ 7.72
  • ASDA Smartprice 100 Indoor Twinkling Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6357 £ 7.72
  • ASDA Smartprice 100 Indoor Multicolour Lights Barcode 27 42 6470 £ 3.74
  • ASDA Smartprice 100 Indoor Clear Lights Barcode 27 42 6333 £ 3.74
  • ASDA 100 Indoor Double Filament Lights Barcode 27 43 0538 £ 9.96
  • ASDA Star Tree Topper Barcode 27 43 0545 £ 5.97

Despite rigorous quality controls, ASDA has been made aware of a fault with its Smartprice Indoor Christmas Lights, an ASDA Tree-Topper and ASDA 100 Double-Filament Lights. Some of the lights, on sale since September 2003, have been assembled with a faulty fuse bulb. This allows the lights potentially to overheat which could be a fire risk.

As a precautionary measure, ASDA has withdrawn all these products and is urging customers who have bought any of them to remove them from display and return them to their nearest store as soon as possible.

All customers returning these products will be given a full refund and a �5 ASDA voucher. ASDA apologises sincerely for the inconvenience caused.

No other products (including outdoor lights) sold this year, or in previous years, are affected.

Customers requiring further information should contact ASDA Customer Relations 0500 100 055 Source :- www.ASDA.co.uk 19th December 2003

Lighting chain - Mini globe Christmas light

10-Oct-2009

Details

Brand: RM
Type/number of model: Mod.: RV-50P; Ref Nr.: 2010502, barcode: 6944623301196

Description: Lighting chain with 50 series connected mini-globe bulbs. According to the information on the package and in the instructions for use the product is intended for indoor use (IP20) and class protection II is indicated, while outdoor use (IP44) and class protection III is written on the data plate. Technical parameters: 220-240 V 50Hz, 32.5W, bulb 5 V 0.65 W, F-mark

Country of origin: China

Danger

Fire
The product poses a risk of fire because the lampholder may catch fire and keep burning, and small burning parts may fall down.
This product does not comply with the Low Voltage Directive (LVD) and the relevant European standard EN 60598.

Action Taken

Withdrawal from the market and recall from consumers ordered by the authorities.

The Next Step...

If you purchased this item, get in touch with the place you bought it from to find out what to do next.
If you live in the UK and need further advice, please contact Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06 or www.consumerdirect.gov.uk.

Source: European Commission RAPEX (16-1298-09)
Category: Lighting equipment
On: 10-Oct-2009