1. U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission
Selling Safe Consumer Electrical
Products In
The United States
John Golden
Regional Product Safety Attaché (Asia-Pacific)
U.S. Embassy, Beijing
This presentation was prepared by CPSC staff. It has not been reviewed or approved by
the Commission and may not reflect its views.

2. Electrical Product Hazards
• Electricity is a powerful, useful energy source that is
potentially hazardous.
• Product failures or misuse can cause fires, electric
shock, thermal burns (such as from exposure to hot
surfaces) and chemical burns (such as from batteries).
• Equipment that generates, distributes or uses electrical
energy should be compliant with standards and
installed according to applicable electrical codes to
mitigate safety risks.

3. Electrical Product Hazards
U.S. Data - From 2006 to 2008:
50,100 structure fires per year
- 400 deaths, 2,990 injuries & $1.3 billion
property losses
- Fires caused mostly by:
- Electric cooking equipment
- Electrical distribution system
components
- Electric heating and cooling equipment
53 electrocutions on average per year

4. Electrical Product Hazard Prevention
Strategies
• Supporting improvements
to voluntary
standards/codes
CPSC staff promotes
electrical safety through
a multi-pronged
approach
}
• Creating and enforcing
technical regulations and
bans
• Identifying products with
defects and hazards
through surveillance
activities and recalls
• Developing education
programs for consumers

5. Voluntary Consensus Standards
• The electrical product safety system primarily relies
on compliance with voluntary industry-consensus
standards.
• Wholesalers and retailers specify which standard a
supplier must meet.
• Three technical regulations for electrical products
under CPSC’s jurisdiction.
•

6. Voluntary Consensus Standards
• CPSC’s regulations do not require 3rd party
certification for electrical products, but there is
a high rate of voluntary participation
– Many retailers will only sell electrical products if they
have been certified
– Some states and municipalities require certification for
all electrical products to be sold in those jurisdictions
– The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) requires certification for electrical products
used in the workplace
CPSC staff strongly recommends that manufacturers or
exporters/importers seek 3rd party certification for their
electrical products as a means of hazard mitigation.

7. Voluntary Consensus Standards
• Since CPSC staff relies primarily on voluntary
standards over mandatory regulations for electrical
products, the staff actively participates in the
process of maintaining the standards by addressing
emerging hazards through development and
adoption of new or modified requirements.
• This continuous process begins with reviewing
information from CPSC’s data collection systems.

8. Incident Databases
IPII
Injury
and
potential
injury
incident
data*
DTHS
Death
certificates
INDP
In-depth
investigations
NEISS
National
Electronic
Injury
Surveillance
System
NFIRS
National
Fire
Incident
Reporting
System
*Hotline, On-line consumer reports, Newspapers,
News on Internet

9. Voluntary Standards - Staff
Participation
Analyze
injury/death data
for hazard
patterns
Participate in
committees
Propose
standards
development
or revisions
Review
standards for
inadequacies
Conduct tests
and evaluations
to support
findings

10. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: In 2004, document shredding machines were
implicated in a number of finger amputations in small
children.
Data Analysis
CPSC staff reviewed incident
databases for paper shredder
incidents to determine the causes
and scenarios that may lead to
finger injuries.

11. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Document Shredding Machines
Data Analysis
The most severe injuries,
amputations, occurred when a
child was feeding paper into a
shredder (even under adult
supervision) and did not release
the paper in time and their hand
was pulled into the opening.

12. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Document Shredding Machines
Standards Review
CPSC staff reviewed UL 60950-1
Information Technology
Equipment – Safety – Part 1:
General Requirements for
accessibility to moving parts
requirements for paper
shredders

13. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Paper Shredders
Evaluation
CPSC staff examined paper
shredders for design variations
and to assess the efficacy of
accessibility probes

14. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Document Shredding Machines
Standards Revision
CPSC staff issued a report of test
results showing design/standard
vulnerabilities and proposed a
working group to discuss
findings.

15. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Document Shredding Machines
Standards Panel Participation
CPSC staff participated in UL
60950 working group to develop
new test requirements to reduce
access to hazardous moving
parts.

16. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #1: Document Shredding Machines
Standards Panel Participation
Panel voted to accept proposed
changes to UL 60950-1 to address
moving parts accessibility

17. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #2: Flexible Lighting Products (Rope Lights)
Data Analysis
CPSC staff was receiving reports
of incidents involving rope
lights, which had been in use as
a commercial product, but was
being sold for residential use.
Raised concerns about possible
risks of shock or fire.
A rope light is a string of series and/or series-parallel connected lamps
enclosed in a flexible polymeric tube or extrusion.

18. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #2 : Rope Lights
Standards Review
There was no standard for rope
lights. Although similar to
holiday lights, rope lights differ
in several ways, including
installation longer than 90 days,
which put them out of the scope
of the holiday lighting standard.

19. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #2 : Rope Lights
Evaluation
CPSC staff examined the rope
lights and defined the areas of
concern for residential use, such
as field configuration (cutting
lights to length).

20. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #2 : Rope Lights
Standards Revision
CPSC staff proposed
development of a standard for
rope lights based on identified
potential hazards.

21. Voluntary Standards Process
Case Study #2 : Rope Lights
Standards Panel Participation
First Edition of UL 2388 –
Standard for Safety of Flexible
Lighting Products was issued
July 3, 2002

22. Technical Regulations
Only three technical regulations for electrical
products under CPSC’s jurisdiction:
• 16 CFR 1505 – Requirements for electricallyoperated toys or other electrically operated
articles intended for use by children
• 16 CFR 1204 – Safety Standard for
Omnidirectional Citizens Band Base Station
Antennas
• 16 CFR 1120.3(a) – Requirements for
handheld hair dryers require integral
immersion protection in accordance with
UL 859 and UL 1727

23. Other Requirements
Safe Installation = Electrical Safety
• The National Electrical Code (NEC) covers the
installation of electrical equipment in public and
private premises.
– Product standards requirements are in
accordance with the NEC.
• The NEC is a consensus code published by the
National Fire Protection Association.
– This is NOT a national standard, but it is widely
adopted as law by state and local municipalities.

24. Recalls
A product for which it has been
preliminarily determined to create
a substantial product safety
hazard must be recalled, i.e.,
removed from sale and those in
consumer’s hands must be
remedied through repair,
replacement, or refund, as
appropriate under the
circumstances.

25. Consumer Education
Besides working to make
products safer, CPSC staff
strives to make consumers
safer users through
information and education
and engaging them in
thinking about safety first.

26. Consumer Education
• www.cpsc.gov
• www.SaferProducts.gov
• Press releases
• Neighborhood Safety Network
• Publications
• News Conferences
• Social media

27. Responsibility to Comply
• Compliance with applicable regulations, standards
and the NEC are highly effective ways to mitigate
hazards from equipment that generates, distributes,
or uses electrical energy.
All equally responsible
Manufacturers
Importers
Distributors
Retailers
• Importers, although reliant on foreign producers, are
directly responsible for the safety of products they
bring into the United States.

28. Responsibility to Comply
Manufacturers and importers should follow best
practices to ensure that their products do not pose
undue risks and need to be recalled.
• Comply with consensus standards and technical
regulations
• Obtain third-party certification for products
• Implement a rigorous recordkeeping system to
document all relevant aspects of design and
manufacturing to assure that all changes can be easily
tracked
• Maintain quality and configuration control
• Assess impact of material or component substitutions

29. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #3: This hair dryer
is missing an immersion
detection current interrupter
(IDCI) plug and presents a
risk of electrocution if
dropped in water. It violates
the requirements under 16
CFR 1120.3(a) .
CPSC seized products at the
port.

30. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #4: Uncertified
luminaire did not meet voluntary
standards requirements. It was
assembled with poor
workmanship, lacked proper strain
relief on the power cord and did
not have a polarized plug. Unit
posed fire and shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

31. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #5: Uncertified
decorative lighting string did not
meet voluntary standards
requirements. The wire was
undersized, plug lacked overcurrent
protection, strain relief was
inadequate and circuit enclosure
was not flame-resistant. Unit posed
fire and shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

32. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #6: Uncertified
handheld work light did not
meet voluntary standards
requirements. Deficiencies
included assembly with poor
workmanship, undersized
wire, inadequate strain relief
on the power cord and
substandard components. Unit
posed fire and shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

33. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #7: Uncertified
portable electric fan did not
meet voluntary standard
requirements; deficiencies
included motor without
thermal protection, undersized
wire, inadequate strain relief
on the power cord and lack of
integral overcurrent protection
in plug. Unit posed fire and
shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

34. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #8: Remote
control toy helicopters
provided with rechargeable
lithium-ion batteries without
charge/discharge control
circuitry or thermal
protection, allowing batteries
to be overcharged or overdischarged, overheat and
ignite. Posed fire hazard.
Units recalled.

35. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #9: Uncertified 6-outlet
current tap did not meet the
voluntary standard. It was poorly
constructed from inadequate
materials. Sheet metal was too
thin and flimsy and lacked
strength to properly contact plug
blades. Resulting loose
connections can arc and overheat.
Ground pin was poorly fastened to
grounding bus. Unit posed fire
and shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

36. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #10: Uncertified
power strip was not compliant
with the standard. Power cord
and internal wiring were
severely undersized, and the
cord strain relief was inadequate.
Sheet metal buses were too thin
and flimsy and deformed when a
plug was inserted. Internal
connections were poorly made
and easily came loose. Unit
posed fire and shock hazards.
CPSC seized units at the port.

37. Follow Best Practices –
Avoid Unsafe Products
Case Study #11: Third-party certified
dehumidifier involved in fire
incidents. Poor recordkeeping and
failure to follow process controls
allowed non-flame resistant plastic
resins to be used in enclosure
molding in place of approved
polymeric material. Insufficient
flame-resistance allowed internal
failure to ignite surrounding plastic
and propagate flames beyond unit.
Units recalled.

38. Summary
Electrical product safety does not happen by accident; it
requires diligence and vigelance from producer to user.
• Be aware of CPSC regulations
• Follow applicable voluntary standards during design
and manufacturing of products
• Obtain third-party certification for products
• Follow best manufacturing practices to ensure products
are built consistently and with proper quality and safety

39. John Golden
Regional Product Safety Attaché (Asia-Pacific)
U.S. Embassy, Beijing
Phone: 86-10-8531-3318
Fax: 86-10-8531-3652
E-mail: jgolden@cpsc.gov
E-mail: goldenjx@state.gov
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