Is Your Phone Charger a Fire Hazard?

4/12/2021 (Permalink)

These photos went viral when Newton NH Fire Department shared them on Facebook back in 2017.

Your phone connects you to family, friends, and all the information in the world. These days, it’s a bit easier to do research for a school paper by googling for information on your phone instead of going to the library and searching through the card catalog for the right books. With all of the connection and information your phone provides, why wouldn’t you want it charged around the clock? The answer: to prevent a home fire.

Some people keep their phone right next to them on their bed, charging while they sleep so they’ll have a fully charged phone when they wake up. In fact, research found that 53% of children/teens charge their phone or tablet on their bed or under their pillow while they sleep. 

If you or a loved one does this, stop doing so immediately to avoid a home fire caused by a phone charger. Phones need to be charged on a hard, flat surface that allows for room for the generated heat to release. If your phone is charging under the pillow, there’s only one place for the heat to go, and that’s onto the bed sheet or pillowcase, neither of which was made for high heat, and will result in a home fire. 

Also, make sure that you’re only using phone-compatible chargers. Yes, the ones you find at the local convenience store or drug store are cheap, but they’re also not specifically made for your phone. These chargers are referred to as “aftermarket” and are cheap for a reason. They don’t meet the basic safety guidelines that the manufacturer chargers follow, and are known for becoming hot and causing fires. 

If your phone charger or anything else, like a space heater, ever causes a fire in your house or apartment, there can be residual soot and smoke damage from the fire to your furnishings, clothes, and possessions that needs to be remediated. Contact the Massachusetts fire damage restoration experts at SERVPRO of Danvers / Ipswich for a fire damage assessment as well as soot, smoke, and fire damage restoration.