I really think the occasions when products malfunction and cause a fire -- they're really relatively rare -- the other things -- like leaving the iron plugged in or the coffee-maker warmer on -- sooner or later, those are going to get too hot and cause damage or a fire. I had a cooktop that had a knob on one burner just didn't turn the burner fully off -- a result of which was a cooking fire -- I smothered it with the lid, but it had a french-fry basket in there so the lid did not fully smother the fire --the fire restarted. I put the lid back on the pan, took an old towel (worn ragged) had my son wet it, took the pan with the oil, flames temporarily subsided, held the lid and threw it out in the yard from where I was standing. We had no grass in that spot for 3 months. That was okay with me -- we didn't have to cut it, and no damage to the house! lol! Anything electrical can catch fire -- the danger is always there. I try to be extra careful -- when I was about 10 years old, our house burned to the ground, and almost killed my Dad in the process. Thank God for a wonderful neighbor who saved his life! The plug strip with a switch to turn off the power would probably be the safest. Even if you have to unplug the strip to be absolutely safe, you can plug in multiple appliances you would use in sewing and unplug them all just by pulling the plug for the strip! Fire just scares the bejabbers out of me! Be safe all!