UK lithium-ion battery fires have risen 147% in three years. Here’s why warehouses are exposed and how early detection protects your business.

A lithium-ion battery fire is no longer a rare, freak event it has become one of the fastest-growing fire risks facing UK businesses, and warehouses sit right in the firing line. If your premises stores, charges, or handles lithium-ion batteries in any form in stock, in equipment, in forklifts, or across an EV fleet you are carrying a hazard that did not exist a decade ago, and one that conventional fire alarms were never designed to catch. The reassuring news is that it is a manageable risk, provided you understand how it behaves and detect it early.

This guide explains, in plain terms, why warehouses are so exposed, what makes these fires so different from ordinary ones, why standard fire protection falls short, and the practical steps that genuinely reduce the danger. It is written for business owners and facilities managers across Lancashire, Greater Manchester, and Yorkshire who want clear answers rather than alarm.

What this guide covers

• How fast lithium-ion battery fires are rising in the UK
• Why warehouses concentrate the risk
• Thermal runaway: why these fires behave differently
• Why standard fire protection wasn’t built for it
• The prevention window: early off-gas detection
• A practical action plan for your premises

The lithium-ion battery fire problem is growing fast

The scale of the change is striking. According to research by insurer QBE, based on Freedom of Information responses from 42 of the UK’s fire services, brigades attended the equivalent of 4.8 lithium-ion battery fires every day in 2025 roughly one every five hours. That is a 147% increase in just three years, with around 1,760 incidents recorded over the year.

This is not a story about electric cars alone. The figures show that lithium-ion battery fires break out across a huge range of everyday items phones, laptops, power banks, power tools, e-bikes, and e-scooters the same items that pass through, and are stored in, commercial premises every day.

Crucially for businesses, QBE found that almost a quarter of these fires 23% took place in commercial properties. The London Fire Brigade, which records the highest numbers in the country, has gone further and named fires involving lithium batteries the single fastest-growing fire risk in the capital, with 521 incidents in 2025, 109 people injured, and three lives lost in that year alone.

The trend is consistent, sustained, and national reported across more than 40 fire services. A lithium-ion battery fire is no longer a hypothetical risk for a warehouse; it is a statistically likely one.

Why warehouses are especially exposed to battery fires

Warehouses bring together the exact conditions that make a lithium-ion battery fire most dangerous: large quantities of cells, often at different states of charge, stored close together and frequently left unattended overnight. Three sources of risk stand out.

Stored stock

Pallets of battery-powered products, replacement cells, or loose modules represent a far greater amount of stored energy than most operators realise. Fire protection specialists consistently note that loose cells and unpackaged modules carry more risk than the same batteries sealed inside retail packaging, because more units can become involved once a fire takes hold.

Charging bays

Forklift and equipment charging areas draw power for long periods, very often overnight when the building is empty and no one is present to notice the first signs of a fault. A failure that begins at 2am has hours to develop before anyone arrives.

EV and fleet charging

Electric vans, cars, and other fleet vehicles charging on site add another concentrated, high-energy source of risk and EV-related fires rose 133% across the UK between 2022 and 2025.

Put together, a typical distribution or storage facility can hold more concentrated battery energy than almost any other commercial setting yet most are still protected as though the only hazard is ordinary combustible stock.

Thermal runaway: why a lithium-ion battery fire is different

An ordinary fire needs three things: heat, fuel, and oxygen. A lithium-ion battery fire can generate its own. When a cell fails through physical damage, a manufacturing defect, overcharging, or exposure to heat it can enter a self-sustaining state known as thermal runaway.

In thermal runaway, the temperature inside a cell can climb from around 100°C to over 1,000°C in a second, releasing flammable and toxic gases. Once it begins, it is extremely difficult to stop: the reaction feeds itself, spreads from cell to cell, and can reignite hours later even after the visible flames are out. QBE notes that these fires burn differently, take far longer to tackle, and can require up to ten times more water to bring under control than a conventional fire.

Because thermal runaway is so hard to stop once it starts, the only reliable strategy is to catch it before it begins. That single fact reshapes how a warehouse should be protected.

Why standard fire protection wasn’t built for this

Most warehouses rely on conventional smoke and heat detection, usually alongside a sprinkler system. These remain essential and should not be removed — but they were designed for ordinary combustible fires, not for battery thermal runaway, and there are two important gaps.

Sprinklers protect the building, not the battery

The sprinkler design standard NFPA 13 does not specifically cover lithium-ion battery storage, and industry bodies acknowledge that prescriptive guidance is still limited and evolving. The most detailed reference for bulk battery storage, FM Global Data Sheet 7-112, was only published in October 2024. In practice, suppression is there to protect the surrounding structure and slow the spread it will not extinguish the battery fire itself, which can continue to burn and reignite from within.

Conventional detectors react too late

Standard smoke and heat detectors only respond once there is already smoke or heat in the air. With thermal runaway, that point can arrive after the dangerous reaction is already underway leaving very little time to evacuate, let alone intervene. The detection that protects an office or a stockroom is simply not tuned to the warning signs a failing battery gives off.

The prevention window: early off-gas detection

Here is the encouraging part, and the heart of the matter for any warehouse operator. A lithium-ion battery almost always gives a warning before it ignites: as a cell begins to fail, it vents trace gases and vapours well before any flame or smoke appears.

Specialist off-gas detection is designed to identify exactly these early warning signs. In many cases it can provide a window of up to 30 minutes to act time to isolate the affected batteries, stop charging, ventilate the area, and evacuate safely before a fire takes hold. Even FM Global’s latest guidance highlights advanced detection using heat and gas sensors as essential to identifying failures early.

That contrast is the whole argument in a sentence: conventional detection reacts after the fire has started, while modern detection, correctly specified, can warn you before it does.

The most effective protection combines a properly designed fire detection system with a fire risk assessment that accounts for where batteries are actually stored and charged on your site not a generic layout.

What it means for your insurance and compliance

Insurers are increasingly cautious about battery-related risk in storage, logistics, and manufacturing settings, and some are reviewing cover and premiums accordingly. While requirements vary by policy, a documented fire risk assessment and detection that genuinely accounts for lithium-ion risk are among the clearest ways to show an insurer and a fire officer that you are managing the hazard responsibly rather than ignoring it.

It is always worth confirming the specific expectations of your own insurer, but the direction of travel is clear: demonstrating active, appropriate protection is becoming a condition of doing business, not an optional extra.

A practical action plan to reduce your lithium-ion battery fire risk

You do not need to solve everything at once. A sensible sequence of steps will meaningfully reduce the risk in any warehouse.

• Map the hazard. Identify everywhere batteries are stored, charged, and handled on your premises including forklift bays, EV charging points, and stored stock.
• Review your current detection. Check whether it actually covers those areas, and how quickly it would warn you of a developing fault.
• Separate and control charging. Where possible, charge away from escape routes and main stock, and avoid leaving high-risk charging unattended overnight.
• Commission a fire risk assessment. Arrange one that specifically considers lithium-ion risk, carried out by a competent provider.
• Specify the right detection. Consider off-gas or early-warning detection for high-density battery areas, integrated with your wider alarm system.

Book a free site survey

Full Circuit Fire & Security has protected the North West since 1981. If your premises handles lithium-ion batteries, our team can assess your risk and design detection suited to your site. For honest advice and a no-obligation survey across Lancashire, Greater Manchester, and Yorkshire, call 01254 956 655 or visit fullcircuitfiresecurity.co.uk.

SSAIB Certified  |  BAFE Accredited  |  Protecting the North West since 1981

Frequently asked questions

Are lithium-ion battery fires really increasing in the UK?

Yes. Research by QBE, based on Freedom of Information data from 42 UK fire services, shows brigades attended the equivalent of 4.8 lithium-ion battery fires a day in 2025 about one every five hours, and a 147% rise since 2022. The London Fire Brigade has described them as the fastest-growing fire risk in the capital, recording 521 incidents in 2025.

Why are warehouses at particular risk from a lithium-ion battery fire?

Warehouses concentrate large quantities of batteries in stored stock, forklift and equipment charging bays, and EV fleets often at varying states of charge and frequently unattended overnight. This combination of high stored energy and limited supervision makes them especially exposed.

Do normal smoke detectors pick up a battery fire?

Conventional smoke and heat detectors only react once there is smoke or heat present, which can be after thermal runaway has already begun. Specialist off-gas detection can identify the gases a failing battery releases beforehand, in some cases giving up to 30 minutes’ warning to act.

Can sprinklers put out a lithium-ion battery fire?

Not on their own. Sprinkler standards do not specifically cover lithium-ion battery storage, and suppression is largely there to protect the surrounding building and slow the spread rather than to extinguish the battery itself, which can reignite. Early detection is the more reliable line of defence.

Does my warehouse insurance require lithium-ion fire protection?

Insurers are increasingly cautious about battery-related risk in storage and logistics settings. While requirements vary by policy, a documented fire risk assessment and appropriate detection demonstrate that you are managing the risk responsibly. It is best to confirm the specific expectations with your own insurer.

Can Full Circuit assess my site for battery fire risk?

Yes. Our SSAIB-certified and BAFE-accredited team can carry out a fire risk assessment and design a detection system suited to the way batteries are stored and charged on your premises, across Lancashire, Greater Manchester, and Yorkshire.