Product-Related Fire Incident Notifications
Information for Fire and Rescue Services and fire investigators on how they can notify product-related fires to businesses and regulators.
Reporting fire incidents originating in consumer products
Fire investigation teams within Fire and Rescue Services across the UK may identify consumer products as the most probable cause of fires and incidents. It is important to notify the relevant businesses and regulators, as it can enable earlier identification of potential product safety issues.
This guidance supports fire investigation teams in reporting product-related fires to the relevant entities, and to OPSS as national product safety regulator, on a voluntary basis. It includes a template which can be used to report information on:
- the product involved in the fire, including model and serial numbers
- the age and place of purchase
- the degree of severity of the fire
OPSS can also receive notifications directly where not all information is available, for example if a make or model number is not identifiable following the fire.
Consumers who have experienced a fire relating to a product can report this or seek advice on their consumer rights. Please contact Citizens Advice if you are based in England or Wales, Consumer Advice if you are based in Scotland or Consumerline if you are based in Northern Ireland.
Procedure for notifying product-related fires
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Once it has been established that a consumer product is the most probable cause of a fire you have investigated and you would like to notify this, download and complete the product-related fire notification template (ODT or ODS). Only one version of the notification form needs completing (document or spreadsheet).
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Email the completed notification, including a small number of images where possible, to the manufacturer. If no UK-based manufacturer is identifiable, it can be emailed to the importer or distributor.
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Copy the notification to: the business’ local authority or Primary Authority if it is in a partnership, the local authority where the fire occurred, and OPSS at: ukproductsafetycp@businessandtrade.gov.uk and opss.regulatoryinformationandintelligence@businessandtrade.gov.uk