The silent heat: rethinking fire safety in Europe’s shift from gas to induction

At the same time, policy and market trends are pushing away from combustion-based appliances: a 2024 review of cooking in Europe described electric cooking as “more cost-effective, avoids gas risks… is more efficient, convenient and better for the climate.”

The shift underway

In other words: the era of the gas cooker (with open flame) is gradually giving way to electric cooktops, often of the induction variety. From the standpoint of fire risk, using gas for cooking brings a few obvious hazards: open flame, possible gas leaks or ignition of flammable materials around the burner, and elevated heat radiation. The aforementioned 2024 report states that “gas hobs … have an open flame that can ignite cooktop fires, especially when cooking with oil or alcohol.”

By contrast, induction cooktops heat by electromagnetic coupling with the cookware, not by heating the surrounding air via flame. This reduces some fire risk vectors — fewer stray flames, lower radiant heat around the burner, less risk of external ignition from the burner flame itself. Indeed, moving away from open-flame gas cooking is often cited as a safety improvement.

The perception gap

However induction cooktops are not fire-proof. In fact, because they deliver very rapid heating (in many cases much faster than gas), there is potential for surprising ignition scenarios if appropriate precautions are not taken.

One important factor is the sheer speed at which induction cooktops can heat. A pan of oil, for example, may reach its flash point far sooner than users anticipate. This is compounded by the absence of a visible flame, which can create a false sense of safety and lead users to assume that the risk of ignition is lower than it actually is. In reality, cookware, overheated oils, nearby textiles or even pan handles can ignite if left unattended or used improperly. As the energy transition accelerates, there is also a broader system-level consideration: the growing reliance on electric cooking places new demands on household wiring, circuit protection and other safety measures. Electrical faults remain a significant cause of domestic fires, and in some European countries they account for as much as 25–30% of accidental residential incidents. Thus, while induction removes some of the hazards associated with gas — particularly open flame and combustion-by-products — it does not eliminate fire risk. And some new or shifted risks may arise.

Clear implications

For stakeholders involved in the cooking energy transition — from appliance manufacturers and installers to fire-safety professionals and households — several clear implications emerge. First, induction should not be viewed as a “zero-risk” technology. While it removes certain hazards associated with gas, such as open flame and combustion by-products, its rapid heating and other characteristics mean that fire risk remains very real. This makes user education essential: people moving from gas to induction often need to adapt long-standing cooking habits, particularly regarding how they monitor pans, handle oil and manage textiles around the hob.

Design and standards also play a crucial role. Effective over-temperature protection, stoveguards and other automatic shutoff features, reliable pan-detection systems and thoughtful thermal management can significantly reduce the likelihood of ignition. In Europe, these safety expectations are increasingly shaped by EN 50615, the dedicated standard for fire-prevention systems on electric cooktops, which outlines performance requirements for technologies that can detect and prevent pan fires. At the same time, Europe’s growing reliance on electric cooking places new demands on domestic electrical infrastructure. Proper circuit sizing, high-quality installation, and protective devices such as RCDs and arc-fault detection are increasingly important, especially given that electrical faults still account for a meaningful share of household fires in several countries.

Another challenge lies in the data itself. Fire statistics across Europe remain fragmented, with considerable variation in how member states define, record and report domestic fire incidents. This lack of harmonisation makes it difficult to draw clear conclusions about the specific risks associated with different types of cooking appliances. Improving the quality and consistency of data would allow safety measures and public-awareness efforts to be targeted more effectively.

Finally, communication around induction cooking should be carefully balanced. It is accurate to say that induction reduces certain hazards inherent to gas, but it is equally important not to suggest that it eliminates fire risk altogether. Clear, evidence-based messaging can help ensure that the transition to electric cooking leads to genuinely safer kitchens, rather than simply different types of risk.