14 DAY TRIAL // A third-party iPhone charging cable caught fire when charging the phone of a 16-year-old British teenager, fortunately with no injuries and damages caused.
The girl, who says she bought the cable from Poundland, was charging the iPhone with the original charger sold by Apple. The cable burst into flames a few seconds after it was plugged in, and the teenager was holding the phone in her lap when the incident occurred.
“It was absolutely terrifying. I’ve bought loads of cheap chargers in the past and they’ve all been fine,” she explains. “As soon as I plugged it in, I could smell a very strong burning smell as if the plastic was melting.”
iPhone not damaged
The 16-year-old Chloe Moore says she quickly pulled the charger from the plug and the cable from the phone, which hasn’t suffered any kind of damage. Signs of a fire, however, can be seen on the cable, which has melted to the end where it connects to the iPhone.
“Moments later, it started smoking and then the metal bit which was plugged into my phone caught fire. I screamed and threw it on the floor and switched it off at the plug straight away. I'm very lucky not to be burnt,” the teenager continued.
Moore explains that she already contacted Poundland to report the issue, but she was then redirected to customer service where nobody answered. Poundland, on the other hand, says an investigation would be started if the customer reaches in.
“This is the first we’ve heard of it, but we’ll obviously investigate if she gets in contact with us. Our cables are made to the highest standards. It appears from the packaging picture this was a cable not a charger and as part of the investigation we’d like to understand what kind of charger she was using too,” a company rep was quoted as saying.
Apple hasn’t commented on this incident, but the company cannot be blamed for the explosion this time, as the cable used for charging was manufactured by a third-party company.
