Electric Multi-purpose Lighters
Twenty years of CPSC NEISS emergency-room records for this consumer product category, combined with demographic breakdowns, multi-year injury trends, and matching recall notices.
Personal Care & Safety Products · CPSC Code 1689
Down 41% over 5 years
The verdict
Electric Multi-purpose Lighters carry a danger score of 23/100 (low risk), driven by roughly 94 ER-treated injuries a year that are declining by about 41% over the last five years.
- 23/100
- danger score (low risk)
- 94
- ER visits per year (avg)
- 7.1%
- end in hospital admission
- 0-4
- most-injured age group
Every figure is rendered from the CPSC NEISS record for product code 1689 - last data year 2023.
PlainSafety danger score
How this 23/100 score is built
The score is computed from four CPSC-derived factors for electric multi-purpose lighters - no opinion, no editorializing:
- Injury volume94 ER visits/yr
- Severity (hospitalization rate)7.1%
- Fatality rate0.00%
- 5-year trend-41%
See the full methodology for the exact weighting of each factor.
What the CPSC Data Shows
Electric Multi-purpose Lighters (CPSC product code 1689, in the Personal Care & Safety Products category) generate an estimated 94 emergency-room visits every year in the United States, adding up to roughly 656 ER-treated injuries across the 16-year span from 2008 to 2023. PlainSafety derives a danger score of 23/100 for this category (low risk), combining raw injury volume, demographic reach, severity of outcome, and multi-year trend. The five-year trajectory shows that injury counts are declining by about 41% over the last five years, with the busiest year on record being 2013 (158 estimated ER visits) and the quietest 2023 (8 estimated visits).
The single most common ER diagnosis for electric multi-purpose lighters is burn, electrical to the finger, accounting for approximately 81 visits across the 20-year NEISS window, followed by internal injury to the head (79 cases). The 0-4 age group absorbs the largest share of injuries, about 241 cases over the NEISS window, and males appear slightly more often than the opposite sex in that cohort. Severity outcomes from the NEISS disposition field show that 7.1% of ER visits involving this product end in hospital admission or transfer.
Beyond the hospital-sampled NEISS projections, this page also aggregates 5 consumer incident reports filed directly on SaferProducts.gov, plus 10 anonymized ER narratives - together forming a layered picture of how electric multi-purpose lighters fail in real households. Every figure on this page comes from CPSC-published data: NEISS projects national estimates from a probability sample of about 100 U.S. hospital emergency departments, while SaferProducts.gov collects voluntary reports from consumers, manufacturers, and clinicians. The danger score, trend indicators, and demographic breakdowns update automatically when CPSC releases a new yearly NEISS file, which is why this page is dated 2023-12-31. For regulatory context, consult CPSC recall notices and the SaferProducts.gov public database linked below.
Annual Injury Estimates (2008–2023)
Source: CPSC NEISS national estimates CPSC NEISS national estimates Injuries represent ER-treated cases only
Who Gets Injured?
| Age Group | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-4 | 168 | 73 | |
| 15-24 | 65 | 0 | |
| 25-34 | 0 | 75 | |
| 45-54 | 0 | 72 | |
| 55-64 | 62 | 0 | |
| 65-74 | 0 | 79 | |
| 75+ | 62 | 0 |
Most Common Injuries
| Body Part | Diagnosis | Est. Injuries |
|---|---|---|
| Finger | Burn, Electrical | |
| Head | Internal Injury | |
| Toe | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Lower Arm | Burns, Thermal | |
| Head | Contusions, Abr. | |
| Foot | Burns, Thermal | |
| Wrist | Burns, Thermal | |
| Hand | Burns, Thermal | |
| Lower Leg | Burns, Thermal | |
| Finger | Burns, Thermal |
Severity Breakdown
ER Visit Narratives
Real anonymized emergency room reports from the CPSC NEISS database.
2YOM WAS AT HOME WHEN HE HELD AN ELECTRIC CHARCOAL BURNER WHILE IT WAS HOT, BURNED R FINGERS. DX: SUPERFICIAL THERMAL BURN TO FINGER TIPS OF ALL FINGERS (EXCEPT THUMB), 2ND DEGREE THERMAL BURN TO R PALM
19 yom burned his wrist on a *** lighter several days ago. Now with increased redness. DX small superficial burn, cellulitis
58 YOM ATTEMPTED TO PUT OUT HIS FATHER'S PANTS, SHOES, SOCKS WHICH WERE ON FIRE BURNING HIS RIGHT HAND AND LOWER LEG; FATHER WAS HOLDING A GRILL LIGHTER ?FD DX SUPERFICIAL PARTIAL THICKNESS BURNS
86 yom history of dementia found on the porch with his shoes, socks, pants on fire; report that he was smoking a cigar and had a grill lighter in his hand +burns to legs and feet +*** use ?fd DX partial and full thickness burns
2YOM FELL OUT OF A SHOPPING CART TO THE FLOOR ONTO HEAD CLOSED HEAD INJURY
72YOF HAD A SHOPPING CART RUN OVER TOE CONTUSION TO TOE
18MOM STUCK A BOBBY PIN INTO A LIGHT SOCKET , BURNS TO RIGHT THREEFINGERS
LIGHTING PILOT LIGHT, BURN TO FADX: BURN TO FACE, FA, HAND, 1 DEGREE BURN NO FD
PATIENT FELL OUT OF GROCERY CART AND HIT HEAD. DX; CONTUSION TO HEAD
STEPPED ON ELECTRIC METAL BARBEQUE LIGHTER/ PARTIAL THICKNESS BURN LT FOOT
Consumer Incident Reports
Reports filed by consumers on SaferProducts.gov.
The product is an electric arc candle lighter whose battery is recharged via a USB connection. I put it on to charge in the usual fashion as I had many times before and left for a few minutes. When I returned there as a strong burnt-insulation odor and I found the lighter lying on the table with its casing ruptured. (See photos) I unplugged the charger immediately. It is a "USB Wall Charger RAVPower 40W 8A 4 Port Travel Charger Charging Station, Sold by: [REDACTED]" (via Amazon.com). It was not warm to the touch and shows no sign of damage or malfunction. There were scorch marks on the table. No injuries were sustained.
Purchased several 'Scripto Electronic Lighters' The last three have had their 'safety' feature stick where the flame still is lit without hand pressure. I've ALMOST but have not burned myself at least three times using these lighters in the last two months. I've used this particular product for over 6 years and until now, have never encountered any issues. I do believe it's a failure of the press-on feature to NOT press off. It's TBD as I was very happy to NOT burn myself. All items were purchased from the Burke Wal-Mart on Burke Center Parkway. A recently purchased item of the same brand has a bar code of 70257 00023, if that helps. If you need any information contact me please.
Caller stated pulled back the lever of the cigarette case and it worked, she rested it on the recliner, and she brushed against it and realized it was very hot. She moved it and saw that the coil was red. She took it to the kitchen and ran some water on it, but it remained red, she then emerged it into water and left it in the water overnight and noticed that the red light dissipated the next morning. Caller stated that if she had not noticed the incident, it could have caused a house fire. Caller feels that this USB cigarette case is a fire hazard and should be reported.
An accidental explosion occurred during the set up for a fireworks show. The explosion killed one victim and injured four others, one of which has since died due to their injuries. The explosion was the result of a defective electric match utilized during the set up process. All of the injuries were a result of explosive pressure and subsequent fire.
Electronic lighter continued light after button released.
Product Recalls
Search for active and past recalls related to electric multi-purpose lighters on the CPSC website.
Frequently Asked Questions
How dangerous are electric multi-purpose lighters?
Based on 20 years of CPSC data, electric multi-purpose lighters have a danger score of 23/100 (low risk). An estimated 94 ER-treated injuries occur annually in the U.S. related to this product category.
What are the most common injuries from electric multi-purpose lighters?
The most common injury is burn, electrical to the finger, accounting for approximately 81 injuries over 20 years.
Are injuries from electric multi-purpose lighters increasing or decreasing?
Down 41% over 5 years.
Who is most at risk for electric multi-purpose lighters injuries?
The 0-4 age group accounts for the most injuries, with approximately 241 cases recorded over 20 years. Males are more frequently injured in this age group.
What happens when someone is injured by electric multi-purpose lighters?
Of all ER visits involving electric multi-purpose lighters, approximately 7.1% result in hospital admission. The majority of patients (92.9%) are treated and released from the emergency department.
How can I report a safety problem with electric multi-purpose lighters?
You can file a consumer incident report at SaferProducts.gov, the official CPSC reporting portal. Reports help the CPSC identify emerging hazards and trigger investigations or recalls. You can also call the CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Related Products in Personal Care & Safety Products
Safety Guides
What this means for you
Treat the 23/100 score as relative risk between products, not your personal odds of injury.
- See where this category ranks against every other tracked product. Full rankings
- Injuries cluster in the 0-4 age group, take extra care if that describes your household.
- Check for active recalls on this product before you assume it is safe. CPSC recalls
NEISS estimates ER-treated injuries from a national probability sample of hospitals; they do not capture injuries treated elsewhere or not treated at all.
Data: CPSC National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) 2005–2024 and SaferProducts.gov consumer incident reports. Injury estimates are based on a nationally representative probability sample of U.S. hospital emergency departments. This page is for informational purposes only and is not affiliated with the CPSC.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, scored, and verified.
