Appliance manufacturer Whirlpool has been forced to add three additional washing machines to its recall list of fire-prone products. A fault caused by an overheating door mechanism on some of its Hotpoint and Indesit-branded models has been the cause of a problem that is believed to have led to 79 fire incidents.

The move means that 5,000 more machines are being added to the 519,000 that the company said it is trying to locate. 165,000 have been identified so far and 70,000 have been replaced or repaired.

The company – which has set up an online model checker to help consumers identify whether or not their particular model of washing machine is affected – has received calls or had contact with around two million customers so far.

The latest models have been added to the list of problem machines three weeks after the initial recall was launched following further research by the manufacturer. The affected machines were sold in the UK between October 2014 and February 2018.

Whirlpool vice president Jeff Noel said: “We are hugely grateful to everyone who has already come forward and we urge all remaining owners to please get in touch with us as soon as possible. While we have made good progress, we know there is still work to do. That’s why we are working seven days a week to look after our customers and running a widespread campaign to raise awareness.”

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