Lithium-ion Batteries: Fires
(asked on 4th February 2026) - View Source
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many residential fires caused by lithium-ion battery failure were recorded by Fire and Rescue Services in 2025.
Answered by
Samantha Dixon
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government collects data on incidents attended by Fire and Rescue Services (FRSs), including the cause of the fire and the source of the ignition. This data is published in a variety of publications, available on gov.uk here. This does not yet include data on whether fire incidents attended were caused by lithium-ion failures specifically.
We will keep the contents of these publications under review as part of the development of our recently rolled out Fire and Rescue Analysis Platform (FaRDaP).
The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) conduct research into product safety risks associated with lithium-ion batteries and are working closely with MHCLG and other Government Departments to develop this knowledge base. A report from January 2025 by the OPSS that covers the root causes of fire incidents often associated with lithium-ion battery failures is available here.