OPSS intervenes with 11 gas hob manufacturers over safety risks

The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) has requested that 11 gas hob companies update products because of the risk of poisoning, burns, fires and explosions, and the manufacturers have committed to a corrective action programme¹. The nine UK gas hob manufacturers have begun a modification programme for certain products, with in-home visits to address affected hobs¹. The intervention was reported on 12 September 2023¹.

The OPSS identified faulty elbow joints as the cause. These are a piece of pipework used to connect certain models of gas hob to the gas supply¹. The review was triggered by a number of incidents, including an explosion at Eckington Riverside Caravan Park in Pershore earlier in 2023 in which a person suffered serious burns¹.

The brands named are Belling, Caple, Cata/Culina, Comfee, Cooke and Lewis, Cookology, Electriq, Kitchenplus, Russell Hobbs, Statesman and Swan¹. The table below sets out the manufacturer behind each brand and the freephone contact number given for it¹.

Graham Russell, chief executive of the OPSS, said:

"The manufacturers have agreed to undertake this corrective action programme following the OPSS investigation; now we will monitor their actions to ensure they make swift progress in making these gas hobs safe for householders and holidaymakers across the UK."

The OPSS also flagged that caravan, leisure home or motorhome owners using liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) should check their appliances as a matter of urgency, because the risk is much higher for those in mobile premises¹. It said that if they discover they own an affected gas hob, they should disconnect it from the LPG cylinder immediately¹. For domestic premises, it said owners who smell gas or are concerned their product poses a risk should contact the National Gas Emergency Helpline for their area, on 0800 111 999 in England, Wales and Scotland and 0800 002 001 in Northern Ireland, or a Gas Safe registered installer¹.

This is not the first such action. In November 2022 the OPSS intervened to make sure more than 66,000 Belling, New World and Stoves gas cookers were updated due to a carbon monoxide risk¹. Those cookers, produced by Glen Dimplex Home Appliances, produced dangerous levels of carbon monoxide when used with the grill door closed¹.

Why it matters for households

A gas hob sits on the mains supply inside the home, so a defect in the pipework connecting it is a safety matter rather than a question of running cost or supply. The risks the OPSS names are poisoning, burns, fires and explosions¹. For a household, the practical effect of the programme is that an affected appliance may be inspected and modified at home rather than replaced, and the work is arranged through the manufacturer rather than the retailer¹.

For homes off the mains, the position is different. LPG users in caravans, leisure homes and motorhomes face what the OPSS describes as a much higher risk¹. Gas hobs and cookers are covered by product safety and marking rules, which sit alongside the wider regulation and policy framework and the product standards and markings regime covering UKCA, CE and Kitemark marks. Which? reports that the OPSS strongly encourages all members of the public who may be affected, even if uncertain, to review the model links provided and contact the manufacturer¹. The number of affected models, the number of homes involved and the cost of the modification work have not been reported¹.

What happens next

The OPSS said it will monitor the manufacturers' actions to ensure they make swift progress¹. The companies will conduct in-home visits to address affected hobs¹. No completion date for the programme has been reported¹.

Sources1 cited

1. Government intervenes with gas hob manufacturers due to safety risks - Which?, which.co.uk