North Somerset Council's trading standards service, in
conjunction with Avonsafe, tested 84 electric blankets in the
district following blanket testing sessions in Portishead and
Weston-super-Mare last week.
More than 26% failed the safety test, mostly due to an excessive
leakage of electric current. Some blankets were so dangerous they
failed even a visual inspection.
Many local residents were happy to leave their old blankets for
disposal and in many cases received a replacement blanket - free of
charge.
Councillor Deborah Yamanaka, North Somerset Council's executive
member for environment and community said: "Some of the blankets
were lethal, with inadequate insulation, no protection against
overheating which can lead to a fire and some had bare wires. We
know that our older residents rely on their electric blankets for
warmth during the wintertime but they are often unaware of the
danger they may be putting themselves in.
"Trading standards were able to provide advice on storage and use
which can also increase the life of an electric blanket as well as
reduce the potential risks from electrocution and fire."
A local resident from Clevedon, Mr Amies said: "We followed up a
local paper announcement that electric blanket testing was being
made available, and we took three blankets to be examined in
Portishead. My wife and I were very pleasantly surprised that we
came away with a new one and we were relieved that the faults with
the old blankets were found before we used them in the winter
months."
