Allianz Commercial’s risk insurance team has published a far-reaching report assessing the emerging new risk of lithium ion battery fires. Their document says, “Lithium ion batteries can be a safety hazard if not properly engineered, manufactured, transported, installed, charged, and stored.
“Cells have flammable electrolytes,” their report explains. “If damaged or incorrectly charged, lithium ion batteries’ high temperatures can lead to explosions and fires, as has been seen with a number of recent incidents on land and at sea.”
Lithium-Ion Batteries and Their Emerging Risk
The Allianz Commercial report defines emerging risks as having unique characteristics, requiring specialist technical, management and organizational skills. Their report, directed to companies, aims to help business understand and mitigate these risks.
Lithium ion batteries, the assessment continues, are common in consumer and electronic goods. As well as for grid-energy storage, electric vehicles, and aerospace applications.
Allianz Commercial’s Assessment of Lithium Ion Batteries
“If incorrectly handled, stored or transported, the potential hazards from lithium ion battery incidents can be fire, explosion, and ‘thermal runaway’. A rapid self-heating fire that can cause an explosion, as has been seen with a number of recent incidents on land and at sea. They can also produce irritating, corrosive or poisonous gases, that can cause an explosion in a confined space.”
Recent Case Study of This Emerging Battery Risk
The Allianz report which we link to below, provides compelling evidence of the emerging new risk of lithium ion battery fires. There are graphic illustrations of the aftermath of a fire in a commercial warehouse building in California.
A tenant there ‘operated an electric bicycle and electric scooter import and repair operation’. The fire damage made it impossible to determine the cause of the fire. However the assessor suspected that it ‘originated from a work bench that contained numerous Li-ion batteries and chargers’.
More Information
Stop Batteries Catching Fire – Here’s How
Coroner to Review Lithium Battery Fires
