Customers urge Kmart to recall 'dangerous' kitchen appliance after another catches fire
There are multiple reports of the Kmart appliance burning or catching alight.
Kmart's popular rice cooker has been called into question again following another report of the appliance catching fire without warning.
Customer Nick Morgan is urging the retail giant to recall the Anko 7-Cup Rice Cooker after his daughter and 8-month-old granddaughter, who live in one-half of their large North Brisbane home, were home when their appliance caught alight.
The rice cooker, selling for $14, was bought at Kmart Chermside in Brisbane and had been used only sparingly before this. Had it not been for his daughter's quick thinking, Nick said the family's entire home may have been lost. "She left the kitchen and came back to an acrid, plastic burning smell coming from the ricer cooker," Nick told Yahoo News Australia. "She lifted the lid from it and saw it wasn't steam but smoke coming from it.
"[Then] she took out the bowl and saw there was a flame in the bottom of the cooker."
Luckily, the fire was small enough to be contained quickly, but Nick says if she had been "changing the baby" or had been in a "different part of the house" the fire could have easily become far more serious.
"They came [over] horrified and I went through to check it wasn't still smouldering," he recalled. "I have an eight-month-old granddaughter I was very concerned about."
Father claims Kmart 'unconcerned' despite danger
This is not the first occasion where the Anko 7 Cup Rice Cooker has caught fire — in fact, there are numerous reports of safety concerns posted on Product Review's website, with people saying the Anko appliance "blew up" and "should be recalled".
As well as this, Yahoo interviewed another customer in 2022 about the very same cooker. Kayla Grace had bought two separate ones and both caught fire. "I thought it was a one-off product fault, but clearly it's a thing for all of them," she said. "It was smoking and there was a small flame."
Following Nick's incident and seeing these other examples online, he contacted Kmart's customer service team as well as the Queensland Electrical Safety Office hoping to escalate the issue. He says he was shocked at Kmart's "unconcerned" attitude. "The person that called me back from customer service couldn't have been less concerned, [she] said take it back to the store and get your refund," Nick claimed.
"That's not the point. It's not like I'm chasing $16 — it's about the fact this product is clearly known to be causing fires [yet] they continue to sell it."
Kmart respond, says product is compliant
Kmart told Yahoo it takes "the quality and safety of all our products very seriously" and "encourages" customers who experience an issue to "get in touch with our customer service team" who will investigate.
"While this product complies with all required standards we investigate any quality issues that are raised with us," a spokesperson said.
Kmart has also said it is investigating other individual incidents that have happened, responding to reports on Product Review. "We are very concerned to hear! Can you please share your information via our contact page and our team will be in touch to investigate," they said after one distressed user claimed their appliance also caught fire.
It is understood the heating element in the rice cooker can overheat if the inner pot is not placed flat, firmly on the heating plate during use, or if the bowl is damaged during use. Kmart has not advised what they have discovered in their investigations of the rice cooker, and has not provided comment about the calls for the appliance to be recalled.
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