REVEALED: The appliances most likely to start fires in Bucks

Cookers, toasters and stand-alone hobs are the domestic appliances most likely to start fires in Bucks.
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New figures from the Home Office show that 1,045 house fires were started by a household appliance in the area between April 2012 and March last year.

More than half the incidents attended by Bucks Fire and Rescue were started by cookers, with 658 fires causing 101 deaths or casualties over the five-year period.

The most common domestic appliances to cause fires in the county in that five-year period were:

> Cookers, including ovens - 658

> Grills and toasters - 87

> Separate rings and hot plates - 77

> Microwave ovens - 65

> Washing machines - 36

The Fire Brigades Union warned that both manufacturers and householders have a duty to prevent fires caused by everyday appliances.

A spokesman for the union said: “Manufacturers have a duty to ensure the products they sell are safe for the public to use and do not pose a threat to life.

“We can all play our part in reducing fire risk by registering products with the manufacturers when we buy them, so that we are notified if there is a safety-related recall.

“Make sure that the electrical wiring in our homes is in good order, and ensure that we have working smoke alarms and we have a plan for what to do if they go off.”

Between April 2012 and March 2017, 145 fires started by domestic appliances caused deaths or injuries.

More than 146 fires were started by faulty appliances or leads in Bucks over the past five years.

Across England, such faults started more than 13,000 fires.

The most common reason for fires started by appliances was misuse of the equipment, which caused 624 fires in Bucks, and nearly 48,000 nationally.

But the old staple of fire safety talks, chip pans, were still the cause of 71 fires in Buckinghamshire, and more than 9,000 fires nationally.

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