On Friday, November 1, 2013, the Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management (OFMEM) urged Ontario families to check the serial numbers of their dishwashers as a safety precaution.
According to the OFMEM, a Whitchurch-Stouffville woman was seriously injured in a recent house fire. The fire investigation revealed that the cause of the fire was an electrical failure in the home’s dishwasher, a product that had been recalled in 2010. The organization wants Ontario families to be aware that these dishwashers can start fires and that those with affected dishwashers should stop using them immediately and contact the distributor.
The OFMEM notes that the original recall was distributed by Maytag, Health Canada and the Electrical Safety Authority. It includes Maytag, Amana, Jenn-Air, Admiral, Magic Chef, Performa by Maytag, and Crosley brand dishwashers with plastic tubs and certain serial numbers. Serial numbers will start or end with one of the following sequences listed below.
Serial Numbers Starting With:
- NW39, NW40, NW42, NW43, NW44, NW45, NW46, NW47, NW48, NW49, NW50, NW51, NW52, NY01, NY02, NY03, NY04, NY05, NY06, NY07, NY08, NY09, NY10, NY11, NY12, NY13, NY14, NY15, NY16, NY17, NY18, NY19.
Serial Numbers Ending With:
- JC, JE, JG, JJ, JL, JN, JP, JR, JT, JV, JX, LA, LC, LE, LG, LJ, LL, LN, LP, LR, LT, LV, LX, NA, NC, NE, NG, NJ, NL, NN, NP, NR.
The product recall notice from the Electrical Safety Authority explains that an electrical failure in the dishwasher’s heating element can pose a serious fire hazard.
At Carson Dunlop, we are passionate about homeowners’ safety. We include a complimentary check for appliance recalls with our Home Buyer's Inspections through our partner RecallChek, to help protect and inform our clients. When it comes to publicizing recalls, manufacturers don’t have the ability to contact every single consumer. It’s up to the consumer to research the safety of a product, a task that often goes overlooked amongst the myriad of responsibilities that go along with buying a home.
RecallChek helps give home buyers an additional layer of information. When an appliance recall is identified, clients will learn:
- The nature of the recall
- Where the product was sold
- How to remedy the defect
- How to get the item repaired or replaced - often free of charge
To learn more about RecallChek, please click here to view a sample report, or watch the video below.
We encourage Ontario residents to stay safe and check their dishwashers to see if they are affected by this recall. To learn more about the advisory issued by the OFMEM, please click here.