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IMPORTANT: Information provided is intended for UK residents only.

How do you protect your child from electric shock?
“Safety Socket Covers” - a help or a hazard?

Socket Covers should NOT be inserted into sockets - they are dangerous!

For more than 60 years the United Kingdom has used electrical power sockets which are probably the safest in the world.

One of the main safety features in British 13A sockets is the use of shutters to cover the power contacts when there is no plug present. Sockets must conform to the BS 1363 standard which was introduced in 1947 as:
British Standard 1363 : 1947 FUSED PLUGS AND SHUTTERED SOCKET OUTLETS.

ALL 13 Amp BS 1363 sockets have internal shutters.

Many parents and carers, not realising that sockets have shutters, decide to use socket covers (also known as “plug covers”) in an attempt to improve child safety.

There is a common belief that children can poke items into the socket holes if they are not prevented from doing so, but little understanding that the method of prevention is already built-in to the socket!

(Note: The socket holes are too small to allow the fingers of even a new born infant to be inserted, the shutters are there to prevent a child pushing an object into the socket.)


	LATEST: Updated Cover Reviews Download Fact Sheets about why covers are unnecessary, and badly fitting socket covers. “Which?” identifies problems with socket covers. Other Press See Daily Telegraph article about FatallyFlawed See Institution of Engineering and Technology article about FatallyFlawed *Watch our VIDEO*


	*“I normally refuse to join in campaigns but this seemed so important, and the ‘safety’ covers so absurd and dangerous, that I agreed”* Author, TV presenter & Patron of FatallyFlawed Dr Adam Hart-Davis in a recent interview.

Even when people are informed of the inherent safety of the 13A socket there still tends to be a belief that additional “safety” measures must be a good idea
- BUT IS THIS TRUE?

Plug-in Socket Covers Are Dangerous!
The so-called “safety socket cover” usually takes the form of a dummy 13A plug, most of these devices are designed in a way which allows a curious child to insert them (upside down) into the earth pin only, this has the effect of opening the safety shutters and allowing children access to the power sockets!

Normally it is quite difficult to find an object which will do that, and stay in place as a socket cover will. Why make it easy to defeat the safety measures you start with?


	The socket on the left shows how the power contacts of a standard British 13A socket are protected by insulated shutters, preventing objects other than a proper plug being inserted. The socket on the right shows what happens when a child plugs an upside down cover into the earth pin only. It can be clearly seen that this has operated the shutter system and exposed the live contacts.

It is a Myth that children can’t remove covers.
The pins on socket covers are never quite the same size as a plug, so they cannot properly fit into sockets. (See this Fact Sheet.) Although very small children may find it difficult to remove covers, they are often so loose that it is easy (check our videos). A cover which is tight in one socket may be very loose in another. Babies as young as 5 months have been known to remove socket covers! (See user comments page).

Children usually have capabilities beyond our expectations and rapidly learn to use tools. They may take advantage of anything which comes to hand to lever out the cover.

We asked MK, one of the foremost manufacturers of BS 1363 sockets, to “advise us of the maximum pin dimensions which will ensure that the function of your socket’s contact receptacles is not compromised”. Their reply stated:
“Please consult BS 1363 for dimensional and tolerance data on both sockets and plugs. Obviously, a socket cover must also conform to the dimensions stated in the relevant British Standard”. No socket covers conform!

Socket covers usually have shorter pins than real plugs, and none of those we tested are the correct size to fit into a socket safely. They can be impossible to fit securely into some sockets, see our video for more on this.

Socket covers can cause long term damage to sockets, possibly leading to the socket catching fire.

Children can to be more adept at removing covers than are adults.
Luca, 11 months old, demonstrates how to remove a cover in 3 seconds! (See Videos)

See User Comments for real stories of children removing and playing with socket covers. What about the very real possibility that an unused cover is left within reach of a child who then plays with it and uses it to open the shutters?


	Covers sold by IKEA, Mothercare, Clippasafe, Boots, and John Lewis are so badly designed that they allow objects to be inserted into the live connection! This is what they claim to prevent, and yet the opposite is true! See our Cover Reviews for details.

An increasing number of responsible on-line retailers are taking practical action on socket covers!
These companies, often founded and run by business people who are also parents, have been taking immediate action as soon as they become aware of the dangers highlighted by FatallyFlawed. All have chosen to stop supplying plug-in socket covers and warn of the dangers instead. We will list here all of those we know of:
Hello Baby is a specialized online retailer of baby products with a strong ethical stance.
Stairgate.org.uk offers advice and sales of child safety products.
Kinderpods is a supplier of innovative, practical parenting products.
Until recently they all sold plug-in socket covers, but now advise against their use. Our thanks go to these companies for putting the true interests of their customers first, and we hope that many other retailers will follow their excellent lead.


	See our Cover Review page for more pictures of dangerous covers. Do *you* wish to take this risk? Now that you know about these dangers, how comfortable do you feel about leaving *your* child in a nursery that uses “safety socket covers”? Do you have any idea if “safety socket covers” conform to standards? What does it say on the packet or on the cover itself?

Actually, socket covers are UNREGULATED! See information at bottom of this UK Government website

All 13A electrical sockets which are installed in your home must conform to BS 1363, which means that they must also have been properly tested for correct insulation. Have you asked the manufacturers of covers that you may use if they have been properly tested for insulation? (No manufacturers have told us that they do!)

Why do you think it is that manufacturers of BS 1363 plugs and sockets do not provide “safety socket covers”?
Because safety shutters are built in!

To learn more please see our Cover Reviews, Our Videos, and our list of Frequently Asked Questions.

Our References page includes a brief history of BS 1363, and additional technical details including references to source documents and background to the tests we carry out.

Please do contact us to tell us of your own experiences, and raise any other questions.

There are various child safety issues regarding electricity which parents and other carers need to be aware of, and good advice is available from a number of organisations, including those listed on our Safety Sites links page. This site is specifically concerned with protecting children from exposure to electric shock from power sockets. See About Us for our qualifications.

Do YOU still think “safety socket covers” are a good idea?

The bottom line is:
Safety is designed into UK sockets - plug in covers reduce safety!


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