AC power plugs and sockets: British and related types

These were usually sold as a mating pair, but gradually de facto and then official standards arose to enable the interchange of compatible devices.

A plug is defined in IEC 60050 as an "accessory having pins designed to engage with the contacts of a socket-outlet, also incorporating means for the electrical connection and mechanical retention of flexible cables or cords".

[10] Modern British sockets for domestic use are normally manufactured as single or double units with an integral face plate and are designed to fit standard mounting boxes.

[citation needed] Line (commonly, but technically incorrectly, called live) carries the full supply voltage relative to the neutral.

There were concerns that consumer safety was compromised by the substantial quantity of counterfeit and unsafe electrical plugs and sockets being placed on the UK market and also by the provision of electrical equipment without an appropriate means to connect it to the mains supply in the consumer's home.The regulations include a requirement that all plug types must be tested and certified by a nominated approval body (normally BSI, ASTA-Intertek or NEMKO).

Gustav Binswanger, a German Jewish immigrant[23] who founded the General Electric Company,[24] obtained a patent (GB189516898) in 1895 for a plug and socket using a concentric (co-axial) contact system.

A 1911 book[25] dealing with the electrical products of A. P. Lundberg & Sons of London describes the Tripin earthed plug available in 2.5 A and 5 A models.

In her 1914 book Electric cooking, heating, cleaning, etc[26] Maud Lucas Lancaster mentions an earthed iron-clad plug and socket by the English firm of A. Reyrolle & Company.

[27] By the time the 1911 GEC Catalogue was published two-pin plugs and sockets were being offered with specifications in amps, but still with no indication as to pin size or spacing.

The Tripin is described in a 1911 book[25] dealing with the electrical products of A. P. Lundberg & Sons and its pin configuration appears virtually identical to modern BS 546 plugs.

BS 1363 is a British Standard which specifies the common single-phase AC power plugs and sockets that are used in the United Kingdom.

In 1941 Lord Reith, then the minister of Works and Planning, established committees to investigate problems likely to affect the post-war rebuilding of Britain.

Others included flush-fitting as opposed to the 2A, 5A and 15A sockets which mainly protruded from the wall being fitted on a patress, a switch being optional, requirements for terminals, bottom entry for the cable, and contact design.

Changes include the introduction of sleeved pins on Line and Neutral, metric dimensions replacing inches, specifications added for non-rewirable plugs and portable socket-outlets.

This amended standard adds a requirement that it shall not be possible to operate a shutter by the insertion of a two-pin Europlug, and introduced new temperature rise tests amongst others.

This amended standard adds a requirement that it shall not be possible to operate a shutter by the insertion of a two-pin Europlug, and added specifications for switched adaptors amongst others.

UK consumer protection legislation[17] requires that most domestic electrical goods sold must be provided with fitted plugs to BS 1363-1.

11, Electrical Installations included the recommendation that "Provision should be made in the plug for the accommodation of a cartridge type of fuse for 13 amps., and alternatively, for 3 amps.

Some of these are legal in the country they are manufactured in, but do not meet BS 1363 – these can be brought into the UK by unsuspecting travellers, or people purchasing electrical goods online.

Counterfeit products are regularly seized when found, to enforce the safety standards and to protect the approval marks and trademarks of imitated manufacturers.

[61] The pressure group PlugSafe[62] reported in March 2014 that since August 2011 "thousands" of listings of products including illegal plugs had been removed from the UK sections of the websites eBay and Amazon Marketplace.

The UK Electrical Safety Council expressed shock at the magnitude of the problem and published a video[63] showing a plug exploding due to a counterfeit BS 1362 fuse.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology also published information on the extent of the problem with on-line retailers, many advertising replacement cord sets, mobile device chargers, and travel adaptors fraudulently marked BS 1363, and mentioning the same sites.

The UK Electrical Safety Council has drawn attention to the fire risk associated with forcing Europlugs into BS 1363 sockets.

Fused plugs and sockets of various proprietary and non-interchangeable types are found in older public buildings in the UK, where they are used to feed AC electric wall clocks.

Made by Dorman & Smith (using patents applied for in 1943) the plugs and sockets were rated at 13 A and were one of the competing types for use on ring final circuits.

A fuse that worked loose could end up protruding from the socket, electrically live and posing a shock hazard, when the plug was removed.

[98] The IEC World Plugs lists Type D[99] as being used in the following locations: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Botswana, Chad, DR Congo, Dominica, French Guiana, Ghana, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Macau, Madagascar, Maldives, Martinique, Monaco, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The IEC World Plugs lists Type M[35] as being used in the following locations: Bhutan, Botswana, Eswatini, India, Israel, Lesotho, Macau, Malaysia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka.

Irish Standard 401:1997 Safety requirements for rewirable and non-rewirable 13 A fused plugs for normal and rough use having insulating sleeves on live and neutral pins[100] is the equivalent of BS 1363 in Ireland.