Amazon Recalls Power Adapter As Shock Hazard

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Amazon has recalled the Fire 7 tablet's power adapter, including the Kids Edition, due to the danger of electrical shock. No customers are known to have experienced shocks, but Amazon is voluntarily making the recall in Ireland and the UK due to a potential danger.

The adapters plug into the wall, and there's a danger that the housing will come apart as they are pulled out of a wall plug. In the UK, household voltage is 220, double the 110-volt standard in US homes.

"We have determined that, in rare cases, when the power adapter included with the UK Fire 7-inch and UK Fire Kids Edition 7-inch tablet is pulled from the wall socket, the adapter assembly may detach and create a risk of electrical shock," a statement on Amazon's UK website said. The hazard is created by the internal parts of the adapter becoming exposed in such an event. If the plug were still inserted far enough in the socket, those parts could be carrying electricity and could be extremely hazardous if touched.

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Amazon supplied pictures of the defective part, the model number FAB7KB adapter, and said it was the only adapter affected. That model was sold only in the UK and Ireland from September 2015 on. Amazon urged customers to discontinue its use immediately and instead charge via USB cable from a PC or other device.

According to the company's statement, "Customer safety is our top priority, and we are proactively offering to replace these power adapters with a new adapter, free of charge. We encourage customers to exchange their original power adapters." Amazon then outlines the method.

"We encourage customers to exchange their original power adapters," the Amazon recall website states. Amazon tablets and Kindle readers sold outside the UK and Ireland were not affected by the recall.

Amazon is not the only company to have problems with power adapters this year. Microsoft earlier this year recalled the AC power cord with its wall plug for the Surface Pro, Pro 2, and Pro 3 tablets sold before July 15, 2015.

Apple in January recalled its two-prong iPad, iPod, Macintosh, and iPhone power adapters made between 2003 and 2015 and used in Europe, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, and South Korea. "Apple two-prong wall plug adapters may break and create a risk of electrical shock if touched," it warned. The company said it knew of 12 incidents in which the breakage had occurred.