Exploding mobile phone charger!

Date published: 15/05/2008

An exploding mobile phone charger reported by Rochdale Euro-MP Chris Davies has made its way onto an EU-wide list of dangerous products.

RAPEX is a rapid response system that allows EU countries to share information about products posing a health and safety risk. The system alerts countries to products that pose a risk so they can be quickly removed from sale and customers alerted to the dangers.

A record number dangerous toys and electrical products have been banned from sale in local shops thanks to the scheme.

Over 1600 dangerous products were reported last year and 100 of these were found in British shops. Toys were the most common offenders with electric shock and risk of injury or choking the main reason for reporting.

The majority of problems came from imported goods, with China the country of origin in around half the cases.

Rochdale Euro-MP Chris Davies has first hand experience of the system when he bought a mobile phone charger at the end of last year. The device exploded scattering pieces of plastic across his living room.

He said: “There was a massive bang and smoke started coming out from the charger. I was concerned and reported the device to trading standards.

The charger, which had been manufactured in China, failed electrical tests and was added to the EU blacklist.

Mr Davies claims the RAPEX system is an example of the EU working at its best.

He said: “If a toy in Spain is found to have the potential to seriously injure or even kill a child then the sooner we can ensure it is taken off British shelves the better.”

So far this year Britain has reported a variety of dangerous goods to the register. These range from a wooden train set with a risk of lead poisoning to hair straighteners that posed danger of an electric shock.

The system also protects British holidaymakers abroad. For example, a toy cow in Spain was withdrawn from sale as it was found to pose a choking hazard, while joke cigarettes in Cyprus may lead to respiratory tract inflammation.