Van de 380 partijen die de vroegere Keuringsdienst van Waren afgelopen jaar in vooral de Rotterdamse haven onderzocht, voldeed 20 tot 50 procent niet aan de veiligheidseisen. Stekkerblokken bleken te dunne kabels te hebben, waardoor snel kortsluiting ontstaat. Elektrisch gereedschap was zo beroerd gemaakt dat elektrocutie voor de gebruiker dreigt en pluchen dieren leverden verstikkingsgevaar op.

Because many users of such aged appliances are elderly, the ministry had to think of an effective way to warn them of the dangers of using electrical appliances far beyond their service life.

The medium the ministry chose was the kairanban circular notice, a traditional system of passing information from house to house in a neighborhood in which an advisory flyer is attached to a clipboard and passed among residents, who stamp it with their seal or sign it to indicate they have read it.

The ministry has distributed 3.5 million flyers to local governments so they can be circulated right away. About 50 million households are expected to see the flyer.