What should you do first?
Go to your fuse board and turn off the main switch. That kills every circuit in the house and stops the fault getting worse. If you cannot reach the board safely, switch the socket off at the wall without touching the plug, then keep everyone away from it.
A hot, fishy or acrid plastic smell with no visible flame is still urgent. It usually means insulation is cooking somewhere you cannot see.
Should you use water or unplug things?
No water, ever. Water conducts electricity and turns a socket fault into a shock risk. Do not pull the plug out of a socket that is sparking or smells hot either, the pins may be welded or the faceplate live. Cut the power at the board instead.
When is it a fire brigade call?
Visible flames, smoke from a wall or fitting, or scorch marks that are spreading mean 999 before anything else. Get everyone out, close doors behind you and call from outside. Electrical fires grow inside walls where you cannot see them.
No flames and no smoke, just the smell or a spark you witnessed? That is our job. Leave the mains off and call us.
What happens when we arrive?
We find the source, isolate the damaged circuit and replace what has burned, often the socket and a section of cable. You get the rest of the house back on the same visit wherever possible. Read more about burning smells, sparks and hot sockets.
Related: Burning smells and hot sockets · Power cut guide · Emergency electrician in Salford · Emergency electrician in Trafford