Japan cautions vs fires involving power banks
With the number of portable power banks catching fire in Japan having more than doubled between 2020 and 2024, both public and private sectors have begun strengthening safety measures and efforts to raise public awareness amid a series of similar incidents in public spaces this year.
According to the National Institute of Technology and Evaluation, which analyzes product related accidents, there were 123 accidents involving power banks in 2024, 2.6 times the 47 cases recorded in 2020. In 2025, there have also been cases in which the lithium-ion portable chargers caught fire in public places.
In July, a power bank listed as a recalled product ignited inside a passenger’s belongings on Tokyo’s busy Yamanote loop line, slightly injuring five people. In early October, a woman and a passenger sitting next to her suffered burns when a portable charger caught fire inside the woman’s handbag on a subway train in Osaka.
Keep within reach
Also in October, guests at a Kyoto hotel were temporarily evacuated after a fire broke out while a power bank was charging. In the same month, smoke emerged from a bag carrying multiple power banks on a flight shortly after takeoff from Okinawa’s Naha airport, although it was quickly extinguished.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, together with airline companies, began urging passengers in July not to stow power banks in overhead compartments and instead to keep them close at hand when in use during flights.
West Japan JR Bus Co. has also begun asking passengers upon boarding to keep such devices within reach.
Low-quality products
In an effort to ensure product safety, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry plans to publish the names of vendors that sell or import power banks and similar products whose safety cannot be confirmed, starting in December.
Masashi Ishikawa, an electrochemistry professor at Kansai University, said that the increased production of low-quality products is a major factor behind the rise in accidents as the production of lithium-ion batteries has not kept pace with the increased demand for power banks and portable fans.
“In winter, being near heaters or keeping devices inside clothing increases the danger because heat tends to build up,” he added. “If you notice any abnormalities, such as a high temperature or swelling of the device, stop using it immediately.”
