to remind everyone that socket covers are dangerous!

[insertrandomnamehere]

Did a search and couldn't find a post on this topic for a couple of years so in case people still don't realise...

If you use Child safety socket covers, get rid of them! They are dangerous and they actually make sockets more dangerous not less.

Socket covers are completely unnecessary and could potentially cause a fatal accident. UK plug sockets are designed with shutters to prevent anything except a UK plug being inserted into the socket. It is extremely unlikely that a young child would be able to open these shutters, as the child would have to insert something of exactly the right size into the earth pin. This is not possible with real plugs. But socket covers hold these shutters open and introduce a range of new dangers.

Unlike real plugs, the various design faults of socket covers allow a curious child to insert them (upside down) into the earth pin only. On many sockets this opens the safety shutters and allows children access to the live contacts!

If you have these at home, please take a few minutes to read the national campaign calling for the banning of socket covers: www.fatallyflawed.org.uk

The IKEA type are a joke, clearly designed for a foreign system and wholly unsuitable for UK use. The fact that they can sell them just proves that there is no regulation or standards in this area.

I completely understand why they can/are dangerous. The type we used to use though were completely flat and flush against the socket with no areas for anything to be anywhere near the holes. As an adult I struggled to even get them out due to their design. If they weren't like that though, I wouldn't be happy using them...

I should say that we used them a long time ago & don't have any need so don't have them at present.

who was it said they had round pin sockets? There is a European standard, for industrial use, and round-pin 15A sockets are still used for theatre lighting; but in a house, it is very abnormal to see round pin sockets unless they are used for centrally controlled lighting. These are very small.

But the plastic pins are still holding the shutters open, thus bypassing the main safety mechanism of the socket..

I have 9 kids and never owned a socket cover!

We definitely had totally flat ones like you describe when I was a child Brightside.

I remember taking them out and playing with them

They weren't easy to get out but a child has small fingers and fingernails and when you fiddle with the socket cover it works loose very very slowly and then has a big enough gap to prise your finger under.

For an adult they seem hard to get out because we are used to being able to do things quickly, and they are hard and painful to get out quickly. But very easy to tease out slowly. I can't think of a design this wouldn't apply to.

I am one of the founders of FatallyFlawed, I would like to thank to all those who are helping to spread the word!

Perhaps it will help if I tell you that anyone selling a plug which is not the correct size can be sent to prison, unfortunately the regulations do not apply to socket covers - and there is not one socket cover on the market that conforms to the correct dimensions! Socket covers damage sockets, damage sockets can overheat and catch fire.

On our home page there are two very important quotes from engineers who are not part of the FatallyFlawed team, one of these is the man responsible for the UK wiring Regulations, he says “Socket-outlets to BS 1363 are the safest in the world and have been since they were first designed in the 1940s. Socket protectors are not regulated for safety, therefore, using a non-standard system to protect a long established safe system is not sensible.” That is pretty clear isn't it? The other is from MK, the UK's leading socket manufacturer (FatallyFlawed is non-commercial and has no connection to MK, but we do talk to them from time to time). The MK statement is long, but it concludes: "MK goes to great lengths to ensure that all its BS 1363 plugs and sockets are safe. Inserting incorrectly dimensioned products into a socket-outlet can both damage the socket and reduce its safety.” The engineer who wrote that knows more about BS 1363 sockets than any other living person.

Ofsted inspectors are not allowed to comment on socket covers or to recommend their use - not surprising as Ofsted does not employ electricians or electrical engineers! The Ofsted position is spelled out in a 2011 document, see this on our FAQ page:
www.fatallyflawed.org.uk/html/faq.html#Q2

You may be interested in the evidence we submitted to Parliament:
www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmpublic/consumer/memo/cr22.htm

Best wishes,

David Peacock FIET (Fellow of The Institution of Engineering and Technology)

David do you recognise the metal MK plug socket I mentioned? It has a plastic outer but inside you can clearly see two metal prongs/plates. Is that an older design and is it safe?

Bertie

Is there any chance you could post a pic?

How old do you think it is?

Bertie

Is there any chance you could post a pic?

How old do you think it is?

Bertie

Is there any chance you could post a pic?

How old do you think it is?

No, it was in my old house and I didn't think to take a picture before. No idea how old they were but the house was built in 1910 so could be any age really. One in particular in my son's room looked dodgy/old because it stuck out some way from the wall, but it did work.

I can try and do a drawing but the more I think about it the more I can't remember if the metal bits were in the earth pin or the other two. I'm leaning towards earth, because I think I remember it being upright. But then I also remembered thinking "Oh that's what they mean about the MK sockets being different!"

Here's my excellent Paint drawing! :)

It is usual to be able to see metal in the Earth pin hole. The design is so that the earth pin makes contact before the others when you plug in, and breaks contact lsst when you pull out.

The earth contacts are safe to touch. Unless you have a worrying fault, they are electrically connected to the earth, your taps and radiators, the casing of your cooker and fridge, your gas and water pipes, your boiler, and the metal of your electric kettle. By having them all at the same potential, there is no voltage between them and you will not get a shock by touching any two or more at the same time.

Not a problem. There's no more danger touching the earth pin than there is in touching a radiator or a tap.

Don't make a habit of it though!

Indeed, the earth pin is designed so that it will be contacted before the line/neutral pins are (the dangerous ones!)

We had covers that fit over the whole socket area that's locked. You could still have things plugged in but it was all covered over. Can't remember what they were called or where we got them but they might be a good option for anyone who wants there sockets covered but not using the ones with pins.

My worry there would be, is it a good idea to have the plug to an appliance inaccessible behind a locked cover when the appliance is in use?

I completely understand why they can/are dangerous. The type we used to use though were completely flat and flush against the socket with no areas for anything to be anywhere near the holes. As an adult I struggled to even get them out due to their design. If they weren't like that though, I wouldn't be happy using them...

That was my experience too. I used the ones from Mothercare and they rendered the sockets totally uninteresting to a toddler who normally liked to poke things in holes.

You could put a bit of masking tape over the socket face instead?

who was it said they had round pin sockets? There is a European standard, for industrial use, and round-pin 15A sockets are still used for theatre lighting; but in a house, it is very abnormal to see round pin sockets unless they are used for centrally controlled lighting. These are very small.

My PiL had round pinned sockets in a 1960 built council house. (3- pinned, not the earlier 2-pinned variety) These had not been changed by the time they left the house in around 1990, though I would imagine the council would have upgraded by now. Possibly anyone who bought one of these houses could still have them. PiL had great difficulty sourcing plugs for any new electrical appliances they bought.

I mean it's a terrible solution but at least it's safe!

I was just about to buy some when I saw a similar thread 3 years ago. I read up and decided not to.

I watched with terror as my then 1.5 year old stuck a key into the live slot and of course nothing happened. Because the bit she was touching isn't live when you haven't first slotted the earth pin in.

We made no reaction to her testing like this and she maybe stuck one pen near the socket again a year later but nothing since.

Toddlers only find sockets interesting if you make a song and dance about them. No way I could have watched this happening if a socket cover had been involved because she could actually have hurt herself then.

Its worth bearing in mind that if a socket cover is difficult to remove then it is a sign that the pins are too big and have been jammed in! Causing damage to the socket is really not a good or safe idea by anybody's standards.

Watch this: - it takes 11 month old Luca just three seconds to remove a socket cover.