A consumer watchdog warns against the use of plastic socket protectors, claiming they can be more dangerous than helpful. These covers, designed to prevent children from touching live wires, can actually override the safety features of UK sockets, potentially leading to electric shocks, fires, or damage to the sockets themselves.
As soon as little ones start to crawl, the extreme baby-proofing begins. Baby gates are installed, wires are tidied away and, for some, every single reachable plug socket is filled with a white plastic socket cover. But it turns out those plastic socket covers could do more harm than good – increasing the risk of electric shock and fire. The consumer watchdog argued that by using a plug protector, you’re “undoing all of the safety features inherent in a UK socket”.
“Not only are you risking causing shocks or starting an electrical fire, but also melting and damaging the socket itself,” they said. When your plug socket isn’t in use, plastic barriers slide into place, which block the electrical current from getting to any small fingers that are poking around near the holes. But “when a plug is inserted, the earth pin moves the barrier, and whatever device you’re powering gets electricity,” says Which?. And because plug socket protectors are typically the same size as a plug, they can override this important safety feature. Protective covers are not made to any British Standard and the pin dimensions tend not to comply with our plugs either. And, in June 2016, the Department of Health published an alert about socket safety covers, saying they shouldn’t be used in “health or social care premises, nor supplied for use in a home or residence”. RoSPA suggested children should be supervised and warned to keep away from plug socket outlets until they are capable of understanding the risks and are able to use them safely. In the meantime, if you’ve got plug sockets which are particularly interesting to your children, make sure they are switched off when not in use and it might also help to move furniture in front of them so they’re less on show
ELECTRICAL SAFETY PLUG SOCKETS BABY PROOFING CHILD SAFETY CONSUMER WATCHDOG
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