An unusual smell, an unusual noise, or scorch marks on the plug mean stop using it and contact the manufacturer.
Requirement — Appliance and electrical safety
An unusual smell, an unusual noise, or scorch marks on the plug mean stop using it and contact the manufacturer.
How to tell, without a thermometer
- No burning or hot-plastic smell during or after use
- No new or changed noise from the fan
- No discolouration or scorching on the plug pins or the socket face
If it has not got there: Switch off at the socket, unplug, and stop using the appliance. Contact the manufacturer with the model and serial number from the rating plate. Do not attempt to open or repair it.
Important: If the appliance has scorched a socket, have the socket checked by a qualified electrician before anything else is plugged into it.
Why this is the rule
The failures described in the UK recall notices do not begin as fires. They begin as an appliance that smells slightly wrong, or a plug that is warmer than it should be, or a noise the fan did not use to make — and they are entirely survivable at that stage. The escalation path exists because the temptation at that point is to use it once more and see. Electrical Safety First's advice is unambiguous: switch off immediately and contact the manufacturer, and check the plug and socket regularly for burn and scorch marks rather than waiting to notice them.
This outranks any cooking time on this site. Where a cooking recommendation cannot be reconciled with a rule like this one, AirfryerHQ does not publish the recommendation — not with a warning attached, not greyed out, not at all.
Evidence and confidence
- Applies to
- Specific to this type of appliance
- Why this rating
- Stated directly by the national electrical-safety body, with a published regulator alert showing the kind of progressive internal fault that makes early escalation worth doing.
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-13
What this does not cover
- Says nothing about how to distinguish a failing fan bearing from a fan that has always been loud, which is the judgement a reader actually has to make.
Sources (2)
Electrical safety advice for air fryers
Electrical Safety First — Electrical-safety authority or body (United Kingdom)
Relied on for: That the appliance should not be used if there is an unusual smell or noise, that the manufacturer should be contacted, and that plugs and sockets should be checked regularly for burn and scorch marks.
States this directly
Passage read and verified
Retrieved 2026-08-13 from electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk
Product Recall: Tristar Multi Crispy Fryer Oven (2303-0055) (PDF)
Office for Product Safety and Standards — Recall or safety notice (United Kingdom)
Relied on for: That internal components loosening during use can make accessible metal parts live — a fault that develops over time rather than being present from new.
States this directly
Passage read and verified
Retrieved 2026-08-13 from assets.publishing.service.gov.uk