How do I check whether my appliance has been recalled?

Recalls are the mechanism by which a manufacturer contacts owners about a fault serious enough to be a safety risk, and they only work if the manufacturer can reach you. That is why registration matters, and it is why second-hand, inherited and landlord-supplied appliances are so often the ones still in use under a live recall. Checking takes a few minutes and needs nothing more than the two numbers on the rating plate.

Safety

What you'll need

• The model number from the rating plate
• The serial number from the rating plate
• The manufacturer's name, including the parent group where different (optional)

Step by step

1. Get the model and serial numbers first.Both, from the rating plate. Most recall checkers work on serial number ranges, because a recall usually covers machines built between specific dates rather than an entire model. The model number alone will often give an ambiguous answer.
2. Check the manufacturer's own site first.Nearly every major appliance manufacturer has a product safety, recall or safety notice page, usually with a serial number checker. It is the most authoritative source for that brand and it is where a repair or replacement is booked if there is a match.
3. Know who actually makes your appliance.Many brands sit under a small number of parent groups, and own-brand appliances sold by retailers are made by one of them. If the brand's own site is thin, search the parent group's safety notices and the retailer's own recall page too.
4. Check the national registers as well.The UK product safety recall register lists recalls and safety alerts across product categories. The electrical safety charity's product recall register is the most useful single place for electrical goods specifically. Between them they catch products whose manufacturer no longer exists or whose site is unhelpful.
5. Pay particular attention to second-hand and inherited appliances.A recall is communicated to registered owners and through media. Someone who bought a machine second-hand, inherited it with a house, or received it from a landlord is invisible to that process. If any appliance in your home came to you that way, check it specifically.
6. Act on a match exactly as the notice says.Some recalls instruct you to stop using the appliance immediately and unplug it; others allow continued use with a modification pending. That difference reflects the specific risk assessed, so follow the notice rather than deciding for yourself. Remedies are free — repair, modification or replacement — and you should never be asked to pay.
7. Register every appliance you own, new or not.Most manufacturers let you register an appliance regardless of when it was bought, and some run a general product registration service for exactly this purpose. It is the only mechanism by which they can contact you if a fault emerges later.
8. Check the higher-risk categories deliberately.Tumble dryers, washing machines, dishwashers, fridge-freezers, portable heaters, electric blankets and cheap imported chargers and power supplies are the categories that have generated the most significant UK recalls. If you own an older example of any of them, check it.
9. Keep a note of what you checked and when.A line in the same place you keep your rating plate photographs. It stops you re-checking the same machine repeatedly and it is useful if you later sell or pass the appliance on.
10. Do not pass on or sell a recalled appliance.Selling or giving away an appliance known to be unsafe passes the risk to someone with less information than you. Follow the recall remedy, or dispose of it through a WEEE route.

Tips

• Serial number ranges are how most recalls are defined. Having the serial to hand turns a vague answer into a definite one.
• Set a reminder to check the appliances you own second-hand once, properly, rather than intending to at some point.
• If you are buying an appliance second-hand, checking the recall register before you pay is a two-minute job and occasionally saves a very bad purchase.
• Register new appliances on the day they are installed, at the same time as photographing the rating plate. Both take five minutes together and neither happens later.

Common mistakes

• Assuming you would have been told — Manufacturers can only contact registered owners. If you never registered, bought second-hand, or moved house, you are invisible to that process — which is exactly the population most likely to still be using a recalled appliance.
• Continuing to use a recalled appliance while waiting for the repair — Where a notice says stop using it immediately, that instruction reflects an assessed risk of fire or shock. A repair appointment weeks away is not a reason to keep using it in the meantime.
• Checking on the model number alone — Most recalls cover a serial number range corresponding to a production period. Without the serial you often cannot tell whether your specific machine is affected.

Questions people ask