Another cable shock looms: Ecable latest wiring to prompt danger alert

AS the cost of the Infinity cable recall doubles to $160m, industry insiders who blew the whistle say there is another “even more dangerous” failure.

Fresh danger posed by more faulty cables

AS the cost of the Infinity cable recall doubles to $160 million, industry insiders who blew the whistle say there is another “even more dangerous” failure.

According to a recall ­notice posted — then removed — by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission this month, ­Ecables wiring sold to electricians in NSW, Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia since 2012 only withstands half the temperature it is meant to, creating a fire or electrocution risk.

The product is supposed to endure 110C. ACA chairman Andrew Davenport said the insulation melts away at 50C. In NSW it has been used in 34 “commercial installations” such as unit complexes and hotels.

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“ACA believes this insulation failure is even more dangerous and concerning than the recently recalled Infinity and Olsent cables because the threat is ­immediate,” Mr Davenport said. With Infinity and ­Olsent cabling the fire and electrocution risks are years off because the insulation doesn’t melt, it decomposes.

The Infinity/Olsent recall was originally expected to cost $80 million but the bill now looks twice that — an average of $4000 each across 40,000 affected homes and businesses.

As with Infinity and ­Olsent products, Ecables were made in China and not tested in Australia. The law allows for self-certification by suppliers. A National Electrical and Communications Association spokesman said the ­industry was concerned: “This is another example of how things are slipping through the cracks and why the process has to be improved.”

The ACCC said it withdrew the warning because the product was used in “commercial installations and is not assessed as being a consumer good”.

The warning listed the sellers as 17 of the largest traders in Australia.

“The matter is in the hands of our insurer and on that basis we are unable to comment,” ­ Ecables director Ken McIver said.

Meanwhile, Infinity Cable director Lu Luo is preparing legal action against the Chinese manufacturer of the wiring her company sold.

“We are also (a) victim of the source company’s faulty product,” Ms Luo told The Daily Telegraph in August.

Luo is defending a criminal charge of selling electrical articles in breach of NSW Electricity (Consumer Safety) Act 2004. Neither she nor her lawyer could be contacted yesterday. Ecables’ ­directors are not facing civil or criminal charges.

REAL ESTATE AGENT UNDER THE HAMMER FOR UNDERQUOTING

EXCLUSIVE

A SYDNEY real estate agent is under investigation for possible underquoting.

NSW Fair Trading Minister Matthew Mason-Cox said the inner-city agent is being probed “to establish whether or not representations … in relation to a number of recent sales were misleading’’. Mr Mason-Cox would not name the agent because the investigation is ongoing.

Underquoting is when an agent’s written or verbal marketing falsely understates the selling price of a property. It is banned under the Property, Stock and Business Agents Act 2002 and can lead to licence cancellation. The last time underquoting was ­detected was in 2004.

“Not only does it seriously compromise the integrity of the real estate market, it puts enormous financial stress on innocent homebuyers,’’ Mr Mason-Cox said.

The possible underquoting was identified as part of Operation Belaya, which began last week and was “specifically developed to cover general real estate compliance, including intelligence gathering to ascertain any evidence of underquoting”, Mr Mason-Cox said.

From the 836 licences checked, 24 penalty notices were issued, totalling $27,100.