Millions of metres of dangerous electrical cable may be in homes and businesses across the UK, a recent BBC investigation has found.
In 2010 it was discovered Atlas Kablo, a now-defunct Turkish company, had sold 11 million metres of cable that posed a potential fire risk in the UK.
The Health and Safety Executive decided against a compulsory recall and only seven million metres were recovered. Critics say more should have been done while The HSE insisted its response was proportionate to the risk.
The British Approvals Service for Cables (Basec) had found the cable had too little copper, meaning it was at risk of overheating.
Chief executive Jeremy Hodge told the BBC: “We identified about seven million metres, which was intercepted and scrapped, which means four million metres or 40,000 reels of cable are still out there.
“It will be tricky to find – most electricians don’t keep a record of where cable has gone and there’s no requirement to do that.”
The unaccounted-for cable is enough to fully rewire 8,000 houses, electrical experts told the BBC.
The Atlas Kablo cable is marked with the manufacturer’s identification ‘Atlas Kablo’ and carries a 2010 manufacturing date and the TSE ‹HAR› approval mark. The cable sheathing colours included white, cream, yellow and blue and marking may be embossed or printed. Many of the cables are also marked with British designations such as 3183Y and BS6500.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41391343
