Insurers and fire services are warning that charging mobile phones and other devices during the night increases the risk of fires.

Half of all house fires are caused by electronic devices and leaving them plugged in for long periods is particularly risky, according to the insurers’ and fire services’ annual house fire report.

Not using the original charger can also pose a risk, the insurers say. According to broadcaster NOS product safety board NVWA banned the sale of no fewer than 24 types of hazardous phone chargers last year.

‘We are looking a slightly increasing trend and we think that it’s largely avoidable,’ director of the association of insurers VvV told NOS.

Five main causes

In 2016 47 people died in house fires, the report states. The main causes are cooking, heating, electrical devices, faulty electrics and smoking. Half of fatal house fires start in the living room, one in five start in bedrooms and 16% start in the kitchen.

The overall number of fire insurance claims went down slightly in 2016 because of fewer severe weather claims, the report says. The largest number of claims per 1,000 households were registered in the provinces of Overijssel and Drenthe while Zeeland and Friesland came in at the bottom of the list.