Why was a candle warmer lamp stopped at the UK border?

A lamp that warms wax instead of burning it

A candle warmer lamp looks like a small desk light with a halogen bulb above a dish. You place a jar candle on the base, switch it on, and the heat melts the wax without a flame. The model in question carries the code TL-167 and was shipped from China by Dongguan Yicheng Trading co. Ltd. It arrived with a moulded UK plug attached to the cord. The product identifiers listed are HL-ZHYT, 518017585, and HL9999938898423001.

The wiring touches metal that you can touch

Inspectors found single-insulated mains wires resting against accessible metal parts of the lamp. Those parts have no earth connection. If the thin insulation fails, the metal shell becomes live at mains voltage. The same insulation also broke down below the level required for Class II equipment. Under fault conditions a user touching the lamp could receive an electric shock. The product does not meet the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016.

No instructions for replacing the cord

The shipment also lacked adequate instructions and safety information. Required cord replacement guidance was missing. A damaged cord on this design cannot be swapped safely by the owner.

Shipment turned back at the border

The corrective action recorded is import rejected at border. The notification number is 2610-0093, raised by Local Authority Trading Standards on 21 October 2026 and published the next day. Because the goods never entered the UK market, no recall of sold units has been announced. If you already own a TL-167 bought elsewhere, the report gives no guidance on what to do. The report does not say how many units were in the rejected consignment.