A lack of regulation covering lithium-ion batteries has resulted in lower quality products on the market, increasing the fire risk from charging devices such as e-bikes, an expert says.
Robert Kerr, an associate professor from Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials, told Guardian Australia that one of the major issues was a lack of regulation around how the technology is developed and how people would charge the batteries.
His comments follow Wednesday’s Sydney hostel explosion that authorities believe was sparked by a faulty charge from a lithium-ion battery on an e-bike.
The hostel in Darlinghurst caught fire on Wednesday morning at 9am, with security footage of the incident showing two men forced to dash to safety after a ball of flames erupted from the room.
One of the men in his 20s sustained minor burns to his leg, and an additional 70 people had to be evacuated from the building and the surrounding streets were shut down while firefighters extinguished the flames.
Fire and Rescue NSW said the blaze was suspected to have been sparked by a faulty e-bike left on charge.
Prof Kerr said it was widely known that a lack of regulation around these batteries was leading to poor quality product.
“That’s part of the problem – there are no regulations really,” he said.
“If I had to weight it one way more than another, I’d say it’s dodgy products and a lack of quality control products that are coming into the country.”
Australia’s product safety regulator, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, said on Thursday that there had been one reported death in Australia from a lithium-ion battery fire, as well as 231 product safety reports relating to lithium-ion batteries in the past five years, and 23 recalls affecting an estimated 89,000 products on the market.
“We are concerned by increasing reports of lithium-ion battery fires resulting in property damage and serious injuries, including burns, chemical exposure and smoke inhalation,” the ACCC’s deputy chair, Catriona Lowe, said in a statement.
The ACCC report identified poorly manufactured batteries as a “significant risk to consumers”. The federal regulator noted that responsibility for consumer safety fell between both the ACCC and state and territory consumer protection agencies, but found that extra-low voltage consumer products are not subject to the same level of safety regulation in all states and territories.
The report recommends the development of a national framework for electrical safety regulation that would be consistent across the states and territories, including providing for recall powers and consistent methods for surveillance and enforcement of safety for the products.
The ACCC’s report recommended that state and territory electrical safety regulators should introduce and enforce clear requirements for testing, labelling, transportation and storage of lithium-ion batteries and products, and online shopping platforms should work with the regulators on safety concerns.
The peak group representing battery companies, the Australian Battery Industry Association, in its submission to the ACCC’s issues paper earlier this year supported the development of labelling standards and improving consumer information on the battery functionality.
Kerr advised against charging devices with larger batteries like e-bikes in houses and noted that as the temperature heats up over summer it would increase the risk when charging.
“It’s when you’re charging it, that’s where the issue is. That’s when the battery is likely to catch fire. It’s temperature, it’s things like humidity.”
As Australia moves to net zero by 2050, the regulator noted that lithium-ion battery use will continue to grow, strengthening the need for appropriate regulation for safety. By 2026, it is estimated that a household on average will have 33 devices powered by lithium-ion batteries.
