Claims director urges taking the risk of fires from lithium batteries seriously.

Lithium batteries are found in all sorts of products - from computers to e-bikes. Archive photo. (Photo: © David Dee Delgado, Reuters/Ritzau Scanpix)

By Ritzau 36 minutes ago

Last year, the Danish emergency services responded to 127 fires in smaller products containing lithium batteries.

This is according to a report from the Danish Emergency Management Agency (DEMA), which the insurance company Alm. Brand mentioned in a press release on Saturday ( https://via.ritzau.dk/pressemeddelelse/15259856/127-brande-pa-et-ar-alm-brand-advarer-mod-batterier-i-hverdagsprodukter?lang=da ).

- Fires in lithium batteries can develop very quickly and cause severe damage from fire and heat. Therefore, the risk must be taken seriously, even when it comes to the small products we use every day, says Claims Director Britta Bjerregaard in the press release.

DEMA's report shows an increase in the number of cases from 2018 to 2024. In 2018, there were 30 fires that started in products with smaller lithium batteries.

Fires in lithium batteries can, among other things, occur if a battery becomes overheated. According to DEMA, nearly one in four fires occurred during charging. Archive photo. (Photo: © Ida Marie Odgaard, Ritzau Scanpix)

Fires can occur due to overheating

Lithium batteries are used in a wide range of products today. This can be everything from mobile phones and laptops to e-bikes and electric cars.

DEMA includes what it calls "small personal transport devices" in its report.

This covers things like hoverboards, e-scooters, and e-bikes. Among these, fires starting in e-bikes were the most common last year, with 27 fires.

Read also: Major fire in lithium batteries: Citizens should stay indoors ( https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/indland/kraftig-brand-i-lithium-batterier-borgere-boer-blive-indenfor )

Fires can, among other things, occur if a battery is damaged or overheated, or if it is charged with a charger not intended for the product, writes Alm. Brand.

According to the figures from DEMA, nearly one in four fires occurred during charging.

Therefore, Britta Bjerregaard also urges people to use the product's original charger and to be attentive.

Be careful with old batteries

Alm. Brand also urges caution when disposing of a product that contains a lithium battery.

- A spent battery is still a fire risk. If it is crushed or damaged during waste handling, it can short-circuit and catch fire. Therefore, batteries and products with built-in batteries must be disposed of according to the municipality's instructions. They must never end up in the general waste, says Britta Bjerregaard.

DEMA has calculated that last year there were 22 fires in waste where an item with a smaller lithium battery is assessed to be the cause.

The agency's review shows that this is typically due to incorrectly sorted products.

RITZAU

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