SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20190826-ED5D0-2147378059. Severity: Incident, No Injury. Product: Supco SCM150 (Black rectangle surge protector attached to an air conditioner unit outside.). Incident: While we were away, the surge protector, Supco SCM 150, connected to an air conditioner unit caught a fire. A section of the siding was burnt and the surge protector was badly damaged. At first, I thought my house was hit by lightning. After a short search through internet, I learned that the surge protector was prone to overheat and catch a fire. In fact, it was recalled by the manufacturer, Supco, this year. My air conditioners were installed in 2011 and 2014 by a local HVAC company in Powhatan, VA. Both of them have Supco SCM 150 attached. I never received any recall notice although there was a recall letter sent by Supco to the local HVAC company. I think it is the HVAC company's responsibility to inform me of the recall as we, the consumers, do not normally know what kind of surge protectors installed. In addition, Supco would not know we have the recalled product and they would not have a way to communicate with us. When I called the HVAC company, I was told that they would only replace the recalled products for those customers who have the maintenance contract with them. What about the rest of the consumers who DO NOT have the maintenance contract with them? The HVAC company personnel said that they would not know who they installed the Supco surge protector to. He admitted that the company received the recall letter. However, they did nothing to inform the customers. I even told him that they could've sent us an e-mail notification to check the model of the surge protector. He didn't seem to take any responsibilities. In the end, I was told to contact Supco directly