The consumer watchdog has warned against buying no-name Christmas tree lights after each of the six different types it tested failed safety checks.
Consumer Council spokesman Matthew Ng said yesterday that most of the lights were poorly made, not properly insulated and had faulty connections.
He said some of the lights overheated as conducting wires in the cords were smaller than the required minimum of 0.5mm in width.
'It would be highly dangerous when the lighting is placed next to flammable products,' Mr Ng said.
He said some of the cords from the plug to the bulbs were too short, some of the bulb connections were not properly covered and some connections were found to be too loose.
He said there was also a risk of electrical shock from lights that had non-standard two-pin plugs that did not fit properly into three-pin sockets.