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Make it official for over 100 million hidden appliances @registerymyappliance.org.uk

We all rely hugely on our fridges, washing machines and microwaves for keeping our busy lives on track, but would your appliance manufacturer know which machines you have and where to find you if a fault came to light with your model?

The answer is ‘no’ for some 100 million appliances, according to recent research. But this could all be remedied by people taking a few minutes to register their much-loved appliances.

To mark Register My Appliance Week (from 17 to 21 January) North Wales Fire and Rescue Service is urging the public to register their many treasured appliances that, unlike our cars, are still off the radar if a free safety repair is ever needed.

While the recent increase in online purchasing (reportedly soaring as high as 70%^[1]) and the advent of smart appliances will all help to improve traceability, according to government estimates we are now running more than 212 million^[2] essential appliances to cook, wash clothes and dishes, clean floors and store our food.  Yet official research^[3] also found that 49% of us have never registered a product, potentially leaving some 100 million large and mid-sized older machines untraceable.

As part of the Fire Kills Campaign, North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, is encouraging people to make their homes safer by registering machines at registermyappliance.org.uk

Kevin Jones, Head of Community Safety said: “As we all aim to keep our appliances running efficiently for many years, maintenance and registration of machines becomes increasingly important.  Whether we found the appliances in our homes when we moved in, inherited them from family or simply installed and forgot about them. Registration can be done easily - even in these circumstances - because the process can be completed at registermyappliance.org.uk without a receipt or knowing exactly when the appliance was first bought.”

Register My Appliance is a web portal developed by the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances (AMDEA) to improve ownership data by making it quicker and easier for householders to register old and new appliances. Offering access to over 60 of the nation’s leading brands, the vast majority of manufacturers on the site welcome registration of products up to 12 years old or even older.  Handy tips guide the user through how to find the important model details, meaning all the user needs to supply is their name and address. This data then goes directly to the manufacturer for use exclusively in case of a recall.

A recent AMDEA survey of appliance users nationwide, in both rental and owned properties, revealed that the vast majority (83%) of respondents did not know or did not think they could register an older appliance that they had not purchased themselves.  The predominant reasons for not believing this possible were not knowing the dates of purchase (59%) or not having the receipts (48%) – neither of which applies to registration as a safety precaution.

To increase safety and the life of appliances the Register My Appliance portal also offers:

-           A listing of appliance safety repairs and recalls

-           Hints and tips on household safety

-           Recommendations for appliance care