BEKO

In the wake of national reporting on a problem it has experienced some of its frost free fridge freezers, BEKO has confirmed that certain models may, in some circumstances, fail and overheat.

The models affected were manufactured between January 2000 and October 2006 and, says BEKO, in a limited number of incidents condensation can gather around the defrost timer area, a component located at the rear of the appliance. This may allow water to seep into the timer, which can occasionally cause the component to fail and overheat.

Since becoming aware of the issue, BEKO plc says it has been working closely with the London Fire Brigade and Trading Standards to identify the issue and the best method of reaching all affected consumers and arranging a modification.

"We have contacted all retailers who sold these products to seek their help in identifying affected customers from their sales records," said a BEKO spokesperson. "This has allowed us to mail these customers to make them aware of the issue and to urge them to contact our freephone number to arrange the modification.

"We are working with a major electronics retailer to contact owners of these products and carry out a free of charge modification to replace the defrost timer. We have adopted a phased approach which allows us to make maximum use of their resource. This allows us to quickly identify which products are affected and have the modification carried out.

"As a result of this ongoing activity we have mailed over 200,000 owners and have successfully located and modified 11,000 units."

People who may have concerns can either contact BEKO on the helpline on 0800 009 4837 between 9:00am and 5:00pm Monday to Friday for information or via the Beko web-site www.beko.co.uk