Welcome to Inequality street

Scroll the facts

In areas of dense housing, a fire that starts in one property…

can quickly spread to the neighbouring homes

And while overall, domestic fires are reducing…

in most incidents, electricity is consistently the cause

With a higher percentage of electrical fires occuring in Scotland than in England

The facts and figures in 2016…

House fire

4,969 accidental house fires in Scotland

Pie chart showing 75%

75% caused by an electrical source

Ambulance against trees

589 casualties, 9 fatalities

The main causes of domestic electrical fires…?

2,819 cooking appliance incidents

346 wiring, cabling & plug incidents

Plus, in the last year there’s been an increase in fires caused by domestic electrical white goods -

242

fires in total - the equivalent of over 4 fires per week

So where are the worst hot spots?
  1. North Lanarkshire - 232 incidents
  2. Aberdeen city - 245 incidents
  3. Edinburgh city - 340 incidents
  4. Glasgow city - 615 incidents
Map of scotland Flame over North Lanarkshire Flame over Aberdeen city Flame over Edinburgh city Flame over Glasgow city

At present:

New buildings must have Residual Current Devices (RCDs)

Properties owned by Private Landlords must undergo electrical safety inspections every 5 years

RCD switched on

But there are no measures in place for:

Social Landlords or Owner Occupiers

...who account for 80% of Scotland’s housing

RCD switched off

Clearly,
something needs to be done

This inconsistency could cost lives

Our ‘Inequality Street’ campaign is calling for change

For a common electrical standard for all housing across Scotland

You can help to change this

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