Whanganui District Council, Fire and Emergency New Zealand, insurance providers and waste disposal companies are urging care when disposing of lithium-ion batteries.

The light, compact batteries are frequently used within household appliances such as phones, tablets and laptop computers, as well as electric vehicles such as electric cars, e-bikes and e-scooters.

However, the increase in the use of lithium-ion batteries has also resulted in an increasing trend of fires caused by the batteries.

AMI Insurance data has shown at least one home insurance claim is lodged per month for fire damage caused by lithium-ion batteries and their charging systems.

This trend has continued at a similar rate since AMI last reported on battery-caused blazes in 2021 when a surge of claims occurred.

AMI executive general manager Wayne Tippet said the fires generally started with batteries overheating and eventually catching light, or exploding in extreme cases.

“We have seen cases of chrome books, e-bikes and e-scooters going up in flames or even exploding after being left on charge,” Tippet said.

Lithium-ion battery-caused fires could cause serious damage but were generally caused by three preventable causes, defective parts, incorrect charging and mistreatment.

Tippet said people should never use a charger which didn’t come with the device or use it in a way which didn’t meet the manufacturer’s instructions.

“When charging electronic devices such as phones or tablets, do not place them on soft surfaces and do not leave devices on charge for extended periods of time,” he said.

AMI’s data comes at the same time as Fire & Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) launched a campaign focusing on raising awareness about the dangers of incorrectly charging lithium-ion batteries.

Fenz community education manager Adrian Nacey hoped the campaign would help the public better understand the dangers of the batteries and keep themselves and their whānau safe.

“They are light, compact, powerful, and long-lasting, but can be a fire hazard if they are damaged, tampered with, or improperly disposed of,” Nacey said.

Fenz said lithium-ion batteries should not be placed into household waste or recycling bins, as they can cause fires during waste collection, transportation and processing.

Undamaged batteries can be safely disposed of at a battery recycling drop-off point, and it was recommended battery terminals be taped over before placing them into battery recycling collection bins.

Batteries showing signs of damage including, swelling, leaking, cracks, dents, punctures or crushing should be disposed of carefully.

A Whanganui District Council spokesperson said house domestic batteries, both alkaline and rechargeable, and car batteries can be dropped off at the Whanganui Resource Recovery Centre.

However, the centre does not take lithium-ion batteries due to the inherent risks in storing and transporting them.

“We need to do further research on this to find a suitable solution,” the council said.

Currently, three privately owned companies operate curbside rubbish collection, Envirowaste, Low Cost Bins and Waste Management NZ.

A Waste Management NZ spokesperson said there had been instances of fires caused by lithium-ion batteries at its facilities.

“All lithium batteries have the potential to start fires if broken and the lithium is exposed to the atmosphere, particularly if water is present too.

“Fire is a big risk to the waste and recycling industry and these often start when larger lithium batteries are compressed.”

Waste Management said the batteries should be separated from general waste and taken to battery recycling facilities at their transfer stations.

The company’s Technical Services also offer a battery recycling programme, which they say significantly diminishes the potential danger of lithium-ion batteries catching fire and the environmental risks caused by improperly disposing of them.

Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.