During winter, people spend more time at home burning candles and log fires while decorating their trees with fairy lights. Although aesthetically pleasing, all of these things increase the risk of fire.

These alarming statistics urge us to give you some fire safety tips to ensure you have a safe Christmas.

Have an emergency plan

Emergency exits are not only for the workplace! Although this may seem a little drastic to some, having an emergency plan could save your life.

With friends and family coming to stay this Christmas, we advise that you thoroughly explain all exit routes in the case of an unexpected fire. Clarify which route to take and where all window and door keys are hidden.

Electrical Christmas decorations

•  Do not overload plug sockets.
• Turn off all electrical equipment when you go to bed or leave the house
• Always use an RCD (residual current device) on outdoor electrical equipment.

This safety device can save lives by instantly switching off the power if there is a fault and can be found in any DIY store.

 Decorative lights

• Check lights for faults before switching them on
• Do not leave candles burning when you go to bed or leave the house
• Don’t let decorative light bulbs touch anything that is easily flammable such as paper or fabric.
• Check that the fuse in the plug is the right size (see the box for the maximum size of fuse you should use).
• Check they conform to the British Standard (BS EN 60598) and are in good working order before use.

Fire safety begins with smoke alarms

• Ensure that you have a working smoke alarm on every level of your house.
• Test them at least once a week and never remove batteries.

Having a smoke alarm in your home can give you vital time to escape from a fire. A smoke detector can be included in any home burglar alarm system so that you can be alerted if it goes off when you are not at home.

Burglars pick and choose what they take, fire is less selective. It simply takes everything.