Home, Safe Home! Top Tips to reduce electrical accidents and injuries at home

It is never too much to emphasize some of the most simple things to do/check in order to be safe! We may know most of these tips / simple rules, but yet it is good to mention them again.

Also check out: the Tips for Home Fire Safety, Electrical Appliances at Home and Fire Safety Tips and Electrical Tips, and simple rules for avoiding electrical shock/fire hazards.

Do's and Dont's - Tips to reduce electrical accidents and injuries

For Your Electrical Safety at Home, Do...

• Have your electrics checked regularly (at least every 10 years);
• Use an RCD when using electrical equipment outdoors;
  
• Use a registered electrician to carry out electrical work in your home;
  
• Regularly check the condition of plugs, cables and extension leads;
• Be careful when using hand-held electrical appliances and ensure that they are switched off and unplugged when you have finished using them;
• Remove plugs from sockets carefully. Pulling out a plug by the cable puts a strain on the terminations which can be dangerous;
• Check that any adaptor used complies with British Standards and is adequately rated for the connected load.
  

To Prevent Electrical Accidents at Home, Don’t...

• Bring mains-powered portable appliances into the bathroom;
• Overload adaptors, particularly with high-current appliances such as kettles, irons and heaters;
• Use adaptors plugged into other adaptors;
• Use any electrical equipment or switches with wet hands;
• Wrap flexible cables around any equipment when it is still warm;
• Clean an appliance such as a kettle whilst it is still plugged in;
• Retrieve toast stuck in a toaster whilst it is plugged in, and especially not with a metal knife – there are often live parts inside!
• Fill a kettle or steam iron whilst it is plugged in.

Remember: Electricity can kill. Government statistics indicate that 17% of all fires in domestic premises in England and Wales are caused by electrical faults which in 2005 resulted in 15 deaths and 1100 non-fatal injuries. In addition, there were 21 deaths and 2788 non-fatal injuries caused by electric shock in domestic premises. But it’s not all doom and gloom. By taking the simple steps highlighted here you can vastly reduce any risk to you and your family.

More Electrical Safety at Home Articles:

• Tips for Home Fire Safety, Electrical Appliances at Home and Fire Safety Tips;
• Living together safely(1) – Electrical Tips and simple rules for avoiding electrical shock/fire hazards;
• A New Campaign: MOT Your Home, warning the homeowners about the dangers of the Electrical DIY;
• ESC advice regarding checking a plug and the plug fuses; the plugs and the electrical safety;
• Rules for electrical safety in the home(read this before starting any electrical work);
• Video Guide: Electrical Safety at Home Guide and Advice, via the Electrical Safety Council.

Buy Electrical Items and use them Safely!