More than £70,000 worth of dangerous phone chargers and travel adapters have been seized in Aberdeen.
Trading standards officers swooped on shops and importers throughout the city, taking more than 5,000 of the electrical items away for testing.
Some of the products failed basic safety checks, exposing faults that could have resulted in electric shocks.
Officers visited retailers to examine products and provide advice on compliance with safety regulations.
All the items were handed over voluntarily and will now be destroyed.
Last month an overheated mobile phone sparked a house fire in Keith.
Leah Shead, an 18-year-old carer, had left her mobile phone charging while she popped out to the shops for half an hour with her 73-year-old grandfather and returned to find her room ablaze.
A council spokesman said it would be illegal to sell the items but that officers follow a “precautionary principle” in the first instance.
This means that the retailer is spoken to – and additional powers are only used when the trader “won’t engage” or heed their advice.
Graeme Paton, Trading Standards manager in Aberdeen, said: “This operation has removed thousands of dangerous products from sale in Aberdeen. As is the case here, cheap imports are often poorly made and not in accordance with the high standards of safety that are expected. For these traders this represents a significant investment in stock that will now be destroyed.
“One product identified by officers, an international travel adaptor sold under various brand names, has been the subject of product recalls in a number of countries across Europe. This product presents a significant risk of electric shock because live pins could be accessed when it was plugged in.
“Consumers are advised to only buy chargers and adaptors made by recognised manufacturers and from trusted sellers, be it online or on the high street. Trading Standards will continue to monitor businesses to ensure compliance of goods will take all necessary actions to ensure that consumers are protected.”
Further information about the safety of these electrical products can be found on the website of Electrical Safety First.
Unsafe goods can be reported to Trading Standards through the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 040506
