HP announces voluntary worldwide laptop battery safety recall

Safety recalls aren't uncommon when it comes to electronics, particularly when batteries are involved. Sometimes, recalls are undertaken before any actual failure or injury occurs however, in the case of an exploding Samsung Galaxy S2, a recall ends up being a reactive measure.

HP is no stranger when it comes to conducting recalls involving its laptops, with its two most recent recalls involving overheating batteries back in 2011 and faulty power cords in 2014.

This week, HP chalks up another battery recall covering a raft of laptops sold worldwide between March 2013 and August 2015. According to the company, batteries shipped with these laptops "have the potential to overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to customers."

The following laptop models are directly impacted by the voluntary recall:

HP Compaq: CQ45 (B), CQ58 (B)
HP ENVY: dv6 (G)
HP Pavilion: 14 (S), 15 (S), 17 (S), g4 (S), g6 (S), g7 (S)
HP: 240, 245, 246, 250 G1, 255 G2, 450, 455, 650, 655, 1000 (B), 2000 (B)
HP ProBook: 440 G0, 440 G1, 445 G1, 450 G0, 450 G1, 455 G1, 470 G0, 470 G1, 470 G2, 4440s, 4441s, 4445s, 4446s, 4540s, 4545s

The above models were shipped with affected batteries with barcodes, starting with the following prefixes:

6BZLU
6CGFK
6CGFQ
6CZMB
6DEMA
6DEMH
6DGAL
6EBVA

If you want to confirm whether or not your laptop is affected, you can download a utility to perform an automatic validation. Otherwise, you can perform a manual validation by entering the laptop serial number and battery barcode into the recall webpage.

Furthermore, an additional 38 HP and Compaq laptop models may also be impacted by the recall. While these models did not ship with affected batteries, their physical compatibility creates the possibility that faulty batteries could have been installed afterwards. In the interest of safety, owners of the laptops listed at the bottom of the recall webpage should also complete the battery validation process.

HP is advising customers who find their batteries affected by the recall to cease use of it immediately. Until a replacement battery is shipped, laptops can be run without an installed battery while connected to an external power source.

Source: HP