Almost 10,000 Audi, VW, Cupra Seat and Skoda plug-in hybrids (PHEV) are being recalled to franchised UK car dealerships amid concerns about a fire risk to motorists.

AM gained confirmation of the volume after German daily newspaper Bild initially revealed that more than 100,000 PHEVs produced by the OEM giant would be recalled globally due to the risk of fire.

Bild reported that the issue centred around an insufficiently insulated high-voltage battery, adding that Germany's road vehicle authority, KBA, had received reports of 16 incidents involving fires.

A spokesperson for Volkswagen UK told AM: "As part of our longstanding process of monitoring of vehicles in service, Volkswagen has found that a fuse in the drive system of some plug-in hybrid vehicles may have defects in individual cases.

“In rare cases, this could lead to this fuse not working correctly in a case of overvoltage. Therefore, as part of a recall, an insulating mat is installed as a precaution.”