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How do you cause an electrical fire in a car?

My wife’s friend had an electrical fire in their vehicle. Everyone is okay, but now my wife is anxious that it could happen to our car next. I want to reassure her that it’s not very common, so I’m trying to tell her all the ways it could happen. How do you cause an electrical fire in a car?

avatar
Bellina Gaskey · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Good question! The most common cause of electrical fire is a loose wire, but electrical fires can be caused by different things, and are one of the most common causes of fires in vehicles. We’re with your wife; its a scary idea.
Loose wires anywhere in the car can spark and cause a fire. While this is something that happens, it’s not very common.
A great way to double check that the electrical systems don’t have any wiggly wires its to ask your technician to double check at your next car maintenance appointment. They’re the experts, and they’ll set your mind at ease.
Another common problem is a loose or damaged wire near the battery. Your gas powered car battery builds hydrogen up around the engine as it charges during driving. If there’s a wire sparking up near that cloud of hydrogen gas, the gas could ignite.
Again, this isn’t common, and regular check ups by a mechanic can help protect from this.
The good news about this is that if you have
comprehensive insurance
, you’ll be protected if any of these unlikely scenarios occur.
Keep you and your family protected with affordable insurance.
Jerry
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Jerry partners with more than 50 insurance companies, but our content is independently researched, written, and fact-checked by our team of editors and agents. We aren’t paid for reviews or other content.

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