The results of a three-month probe, presented yesterday, into why consumers were not informed about a brand of steam iron responsible for electrocuting three people last year found that no public bodies could be held responsible.

The Development Ministry issued a statement in April saying consumers who owned the Chinese-made Perla steam iron should return it because it was “particularly dangerous.” The announcement came a year after three people who had used the iron were electrocuted, even though police, prosecutors, local authorities and the Labor Inspectorate had all been aware of the deaths. Investigators said they were not culpable since the law did not require them to inform the ministry or the public. Development Minister Dimitris Sioufas said the law would be amended to cut out this loophole.

Sioufas also unveiled an 11-point plan to monitor the electrical goods market more stringently and increase safety amid concerns about the quality of some cheap imports. Under one of the measures, all electrical circuits in new buildings from March next year will need to have a general fuse installed. Sioufas said the government would spend up to 15 million euros a year on monitoring the market.