Google Pixel 6a warning issued by Australian product safety regulator

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) published a product recall notice for the Google Pixel 6a, and warned that it had battery overheating issues.

The notice came on July 25, with the product safety regulator warning that incidents had occurred which resulted in serious burn injuries. The overheating battery could also lead to a fire, per the regulator.

“The battery may overheat. An automatic firmware update to Android 16 was rolled out to Pixel 6a devices in Australia on 8 July 2025. Google advises that the firmware update provides new battery management features that mitigate the risk of overheating. Consumers do not need to return their devices,” noted the ACCC in its product statement.

However, the ACCC said the issue did not affect all Pixel 6a devices. For affected devices, the new battery management system will be activated once the device gets the firmware update and reaches 400 battery cycles. For others, the firmware update will have no impact on battery management and the device will be as before.

Tech outlet Android Authority also highlighted cases of Reddit users who claimed that their Google Pixel 6a phones had caught fire or started burning. There have been complaints about other Google smartphone models from the A-series seeing similar issues. Users noted battery swelling in the Pixel 7a and overheating in the Pixel 4a, per Android Authority.

While some pointed to the use of off-brand chargers as a possible cause for the phone catching fire, Google is yet to formally address the issue and confirm its underlying cause.