Fire crews face battery challenge despite record safety visits and drop in house fires

23/06/2026

Firefighters are facing an increasing number of fires involving batteries and devices, despite overall fires in homes falling in the last year.

Fires involving devices such as e-bikes and e-scooters, as well as e-cigarettes and mobile phones, have increased each year since 2022. In 2025 crews attended 29 fires involving batteries, the highest number recorded, which also included disposed batteries igniting refuse lorries.

This is despite the number of fires in homes falling by more than 20 per cent in the last calendar year, from 302 down to 240. Just under half of these fires started in the kitchen.

Group Commander James Ball said: “Our crews are seeing more and more fires involving batteries, either charging in the home or involving refuse lorries. Many of these fires can be avoided by taking simple precautions, such as disposing of batteries in appropriate recycling facilities and making sure devices are charged when people are awake and alert, to help avoid them heating up and exploding.

“As well as batteries, many of the fires our crews attend are started in the kitchen. Unattended cooking, hobs being left on or not being turned off at the wall, as well as clutter on top of cookers are all common causes of fire, which can be avoided by taking a few precautions.”

To help keep people safe in their homes, the Service has been targeting more visits to vulnerable people. Fire crews and community safety officers have delivered more than 8,500 home fire safety visits over the last financial year, more than 500 compared with the previous year.

James added: “We have been working really hard to try and reach as many vulnerable people as we possibly can. Our crews and community safety officers have been at the forefront of this, delivering more visits on a daily basis than they ever have. We’re continuously seeing thousands more people year on year.

“This is also a real partnership approach. By sharing data with our partners we can better target our visits to those most vulnerable in our county. Last year alone more than 3,000 visits were as a result of referrals from our partners.”

One way people can help keep their homes fire safe is to carry out their own fire risk assessment of their home. This simple to use tool goes through each area of a property and generates a safety plan for the occupants to follow. The check can be carried out on behalf of a vulnerable family member too.

Start your home safety check by visiting our Community Safety section.