Unsafe cables could cause house fires next year

The degrading Infinity cable could cause fires from as early as 2016, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has warned.

An estimated 3900 km of unsafe cable was supplied and approximately 2800 km is yet to be remediated, recovered or scheduled for remediation under the recall. Approximately 28% of the cable has been accounted for.

“The ACCC is extremely concerned that over 70% of the cable supplied has not been accounted for under the recall,” said ACCC Deputy Chair Delia Rickard. The commission is urging electricians, builders and contractors to notify their customers and cable suppliers if they installed Infinity cables between 2010 and 2013.

The ACCC held an Infinity Regulatory Taskforce meeting with electrical, building and Australian consumer law regulators on Thursday 6 August to discuss and agree what more is needed from businesses on this front. “It is clear that all businesses in the supply chain need to be doing more to alert consumers to the recall and remediation options.”

The ACCC recently undertook an advertising campaign to warn consumers about the risks of Infinity cables.

“Consumers that purchased new properties, undertook renovations, had appliances installed or had electrical work carried out in the past few years should contact a licensed electrician for a safety inspection to determine if Infinity cables were installed,” Rickard said.

“Consumers should not attempt to inspect cables themselves. Any affected cable installed in accessible areas or near heat sources must be removed and replaced under the safety recall.”

Infinity cables were recalled last year after they failed electrical safety standards due to poor quality plastic insulation coating, which will become brittle prematurely. Once the insulation is brittle, physical contact with the cables could dislodge the insulation and lead to electric shock or possibly fires.

The risk of physical contact is highest in roof spaces and under raised floors. Cables exposed to prolonged high temperatures will degrade at a faster rate.

Table: Data as at 5/8/15

State	Installation period	KM supplied	KM remediated*	KM recovered from warehouses	KM scheduled for future remediation	KM outstanding	Properties made safe
NSW	2010–2013	1849	19	-	-	1830	92
Qld	2012–2013	680	8	-	-	672	17
SA	2012–2013	44	0	-	-	44	-
Tas	2013	4	0	-	-	4	-
Vic	2012–2013	910	5	-	-	905	7
WA	2012–2013	251	0	-	-	251	-
ACT	2011-2013	162	5	-	-	157	182
NT	-	0	-	-	-	-	N/A
State not specified	-	-	191	403	479	-	61
TOTAL	-	3900	228	403	479	2790**	359

*Remediated is replaced, rendered safe under the recall or returned to stores.

**Cable remediated or recovered for unspecified states/territories has been deducted from total KM outstanding, as has cable scheduled for future remediation.