Electric Stove Recall Is a Good Reminder to Read (and Keep) Your Manuals

Earlier this month, the Consumer Products Safety Board (CPSB) issued a recall for certain models of LG electric ranges, about half a million units in total, warning that the stove’s burners could be unintentionally activated by the front-mounted knobs, perhaps by children, pets or otherwise by accident. The slide-in and freestanding ranges were sold between 2015 and 2025, and manufactured in Mexico and Korea. (Find out if your LG range’s model number is affected here.)

As of its recall announcement, the CPSB said it had received dozens of complaints about such unintentional activation of the burners, and that the stoves in question had caused at least 28 fires. While this may, at first, sound like a major safety oversight, the LG ranges in question already had built-in “Control Lock” or “Lock Out” features to avoid these exact issues, as shown in a video released by LG.

The recall is notable in that the LG is not going to refund or replace the affected ranges, but rather offer stick-on labels for consumers to place in more visible locations, reminding them to use the existing locking function when the stove is not in use. Senior Vice President of LG Electronics USA John I. Taylor also explained to USA Today that the stoves have an indicator light and audio notification when burners are turned out, as well as a “hot surface” indicator light which reminds consumers that a burner might still be hot even after it is turned off. LG also advises that nothing should be stored on top of the glass range top, even when not actively operating the appliance.

Kitchen Fire Causes

“Nearly half of all U.S. home fires involve cooking equipment, making cooking fires by far the leading cause of home fires,” Susan McKelvey, communications manager for the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) told HGTV. “Unattended cooking is the leading cause of cooking fires, which is why we emphasize the importance of never leaving cooking unattended, particularly for food cooking on the stove.” Indeed, estimates by the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) from 2022 cite “cooking” as the cause of 48-percent of residential fires.

Of those cooking-related fires, NFPA data shows that 53-percent are caused by ranges and stoves, and nearly one third are caused by leaving the cooking equipment unattended while in use. However, in the past decade, USFA’s research suggests, cooking (and residential fires in general) have been on the decline. But while the fires resulting from the recalled ranges could technically be considered in the category of “cooking,” they might actually fit better into the “unintentional/careless” label of residential fire causes, which the USFA says saw a 49-percent increase in instances between 2013 and 2022.

Safety Tips for Kitchen Appliances

Every kitchen is different, whether it may have a gas or electric range, built-in versus slide-in appliances, or up-to-code safety features versus dated technology that’s been grandfathered in over the years. But when it comes to issues like LG’s recent recall, here are a few tips that can and do apply to any appliance in your kitchen and home:

Read the manual.

While it’s exciting to upgrade or acquire a fancy new stove or other appliance, it’s easy to flip through the quick start portion of the guide and start playing around with your new “toy.” But it’s equally as important to read through all of the features, the fun and the functional, to familiarize yourself with everything your appliance can do, including safety features that can potentially save your property or your life.

Keep the manual.

Once you get the hang of an appliance, you may feel confident enough to toss the manual in the recycling bin or bury it in some box in the garage. But things can change: You have a new baby, you adopt a larger breed of dog that can reach the countertops, you change your diet or routine, or perhaps you or a loved one has to adapt to a new physical health issue. Suddenly, some features that you ignored before (hello, child lock) might be exactly what you need to avoid accidents down the line. Luckily, even if this advice is arriving too late to apply to your current kitchen appliances, manuals are often available in a digital format (like .pdf) from the manufacturer or third-party websites. So if you lose the hard copy, you can still keep a spare backed up with other important documents on your computer. Not only is this a good practice for yourself, but if you own your home, it’s also super helpful for any future homebuyers you sell to, too.

Play it extremely safe.

“In terms of using cooking equipment properly, people should carefully follow the manufacturer’s instructions and code requirements for proper installation, usage and cleaning,” McKelvey advised. And that includes those guidelines about not using your appliance for anything it’s not intended for, whether that’s storing pots and pans in your oven or stacking cereal boxes over the vent on top of your refrigerator.

For more information on residential fire prevention, check out the USFA page on the subject. The NFPA also has on its website resources for fire safety while cooking, and home fire safety in general. Even if you don’t have a recalled LG range, it might be a good time to brush up on the basics. Oh yeah, and where did you stash that instruction manual?