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People are being told to stop charging their e-devices once they are full as the number of fires caused by batteries rises.
Data from insurer AMI said there had been a 17 percent increase year-on-year in fires started from lithium ion batteries - which are used in phones, hearing aids, power tools, computers and more.
Insurance Council of New Zealand consumer affairs manager Sarah-Jane Knox told Nine to Noonthe fires were often caused because people were charging incorrectly.
That could mean using the wrong charger, using a device that had been physically damaged, or over charging.
"Really with these lithium ion batteries, once they are charged you should unplug them... they're not safe to be left on overnight for things like power tools," she said.
That advice tended to be different for cars because the manufacturers' instructions allowed that.
People charging their phones while they slept should take precautions, she said.
"You shouldn't have it on any soft furnishings like beds or couches, that sort of thing."
If the batteries overheated they emitted a toxic, flammable, explosive gas, she said.
"It causes quite an intense fire and you can't extinguish it and, because it's so explosive, it can quickly spread," she said.
The batteries were responsible for 10 percent of all total-loss house fires, Knox said.
This week, Auckland recycling firm Simsmetal Industries was fined $30,000 after a fire at a scrap metal yard in 2023 caused by a lithium-ion battery.
In Western Australia, an average of three house fires a week were caused by the batteries exploding, and a growing number of Australian apartment buildings were banning electric vehicles due to fire-risk concerns.
Australian insurers, many of which were the same companies that operated in New Zealand, have said while there were no immediate plans to charge higher premiums for households with the batteries, or to try to restrict their use, they were deeply concerned.
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