A devastated dad claims his tumble dryer caught fire causing £10,000 worth of damage - and killed his pet parrot.
Steven Patterson, 44, saw his beloved Congo grey parrot Marlon Dingle die in his arms after suffocating from smoke bellowing out of his Hotpoint tumble dryer, he said.
The takeaway owner had popped out to buy dinner when he received a call from emergency services saying his flat had caught fire.
Emergency services raced to the scene to tackle the blaze with firefighters and even went to lengths to create a make-shift miniature plastic mask in a bid to save Marlon.
But despite their efforts, ten-year-old Marlon passed away and was buried in the garden later that day.
Whirlpool - which owns Hotpoint - deny the fire was caused by the tumble dryer - which wasn't subject to the mass recall of products in February 2016.
The manufacturer pulled 519,000 Hotpoint and Indesit models from shelves yesterday over fears they could overheat and catch fire.
Last month an investigation ruled Steven would not be entitled for compensation as the tumble dryer was not "installed according to the manufacturer's instructions".
Now a year after the blaze, Stephen says he is still without answers as to how the fire started and has vowed to avenge Marlon's death to prevent him from dying in vain.
Steven, from Fawdon, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, said: "My parrot Marlon Dingle is dead and they don't care one bit.
"We've lost a member of a family. He was the baby of the family. Him and my daughter grew up together.
"He used to mimic my daughter and mam, we've got so many happy memories involving him.
"I rescued him from someone who was keeping him in a shed in their garden about ten years ago.
"I turned round and told him he shouldn't be keeping him like that. I said I'd give him £900 to take him back and give him a good home.
"I hate people who take the p*** with animals.
"It took him a year to come out of his cage.
"But when we grew that bond it was unbreakable.
"I can't believe he's gone and there's not an ounce of sympathy."
Steven bought the tumble dryer in September 2016 which he went to use weekly, and claims to have emptied out the filter after each use.
But two years later when Steven had popped out to buy dinner when he received a call saying his kitchen was on fire.
Steven said: "My instinct was to rush over his cage and take him out of the house.
"He'd always used to squawk and be loud but this wasn't squawking this was squealing.
"He was choking so bad. The firefighters made a makeshift plastic mask for him.
"He was just so terrified and covered in soot.
"It was just terrible to watch. I managed to grab a tea towel to wrap him up in but within ten minutes he died in my arms.
"I took a photo so I could show people what had happened but I couldn't bare to take anymore.
"I know I sound daft. I'm covered in tattoos and I'm getting all poncy over a bird but he was my little bird.
"He used to rest up on my shoulder and we'd watch TV together.
"Everyone in the area knew him.
"It was like having a dog but he could speak.
"He may not have understood what I said but he was part of the family."
Last month the insurance company ruled they "cannot say with any certainty that the appliance was installed according to the manufacturer's instructions."
Steven said: "I had expensive pots and pans, the key to my vintage motorbike, tonnes of designer clothes which I had just washed.
"They've been doing that forensic report for a year and for them to turn round and say it wasn't installed properly is a joke.
"It's like getting someone in to install your kettle or a microwave.
"Are you telling me these need to be installed by a Whirlpool engineer too?
"It's ridiculous.
"The thing is the tumble dryer was switched off.
"There wasn't even any power going into it and it still caught alight.
"Everything in there was burned to a crisp.
"The TV that was eight or nine feet away from the tumble dryer was completely melted.
"They kept fobbing me off saying they were getting a forensic report together but after five or six months I started to get suspicious.
"They told me they were looking for fluff but there wasn't even any f***ing metal left why on earth are they spending months looking for a bit of fluff?
"It's just complete bulls*** and they are taking the p***.
"I just want some responsibility taken.
"It's difficult for me to sleep. I just fear I'm going to burn and wake up dead.
"Now I don't even have the comfort that if its unplugged that it's safe.
"It's not about the money.
"I want to warn others and want Whirlpool to stop putting lives at risk.
"I bought my machine after the recalls but it still happened to me.
"I've lost something irreplaceable and would hate to see someone go through the same."
A spokesperson for Whirlpool Corporation said: "An independent investigation into this incident has concluded that the tumble dryer was not the cause of the fire."
