UPDATE 1-Samsung to check, repair up to 500,000 fridges

Published: 02 Nov 2009 05:41:38 PST

* To provide home-visiting and repair service

* Most of affected fridges were sold in Europe

* No detail on products affected, type of problem

* Follows recall of fridges in SKorea last week

SEOUL, Nov 2 - South Korean consumer electronics maker Samsung Electronics Co Ltd said on Monday it would provide home-visiting and repair services for 400,000-500,000 refrigerators sold in global markets, mostly in Europe, to ensure consumer safety.

"The possibility of a problem is extremely rare, but we are taking precautionary steps for consumer safety," Samsung spokesman James Chung said. Details of the models affected and the specific problem were not immediately available.

The news came after Samsung last week said it would recall 210,000 refrigerators sold in South Korea on safety concerns. It said at the time that the units, manufactured between 2005 and 2006, may have an insulation problem.

Samsung is the world's biggest TV brand and also the No. 2 maker of mobile phones.