FPE Stab Lok Electric Panel Advice for Home Buyers & Sellers
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Home buyers and home inspectors who encounter a difference of opinion about FPE Stab-Lok equipment expressed by a home seller, seller's attorney, or real estate agent, sometimes report the view that because there was no US Government recall of FPE Stab-Lok electrical panels, there is no concern regarding that equipment.

• The hazard: Federal Pacific Electric Stab-Lok electrical panels are a latent fire hazard because the circuit breakers frequently fail to trip when they should. A circuit breaker that does not trip in response to an unsafe overcurrent or circuit overload in a building is not providing the protection that was intended. The absence of a recall does not mean the absence of a problem. Aluminum wiring is a recognized fire hazard but was never "recalled". Pennies in fuse sockets are a recognized fire hazard but have never been specifically addressed by recall nor by explicit legislation.
• References that support this conclusion are at FPE Stab-Lok HAZARDS & REPAIRS WEBSITE
• Conflicts of interest: OPINION: people who assert that this product is not a concern are speaking from a position of conflicting interest (wanting to sell a house for the most profit, or wanting to protect corporate assets from liability claims). This viewpoint does not include a concern for the safety of the next occupants of a building served by an FPE Stab-Lok electrical panel.
• Past history: Statements about this equipment by an owner or realtor that "there has never been a problem in this building" are not a safe predictor of what can happen in the future. It may simply be the case that the circuit breakers have not been called-on to respond to an overload condition.
• The electrical panel should be replaced.
• The cost of electrical panel replacement, (typically $800. to $1800) is not significant as a portion of value of a home. Some replacement methods (steel panel enclosure reuse) may reduce that cost in some cases.
• Recalls, warranties, financial aid: currently we are aware of no useful relief to consumers through these avenues when replacing this equipment.
• Who pays?We are a neutral party concerning who pays (buyer or seller of a property) but we suggest that the panel should be replaced promptly.

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