Bought a Nikon dSLR or Nikon 1 in the last 12 months? You might want to take a closer look at the battery pack that came with it.

Nikon has issued a recall on their EN-EL15 Lithium-Ion rechargeable batteries due to the potential for a short-circuit which could damage the battery, your camera and possibly you.

The batteries shipped with all new  D800, D800E, D7000 cameras and the Nikon 1 V1 advanced camera with interchangeable lens.

The unit is also currently on some store shelves separately listed as Nikon’s model number 27011.

The recall does not affect the actual cameras themselves – just the batteries.

If you suspect your battery is affected by the recall, here’s what you should do:

• Check if your battery is part of the recalled group by examining the 14-digit lot number located on the underside of the battery
• If the 9th character of the lot number is E or F, your battery is being recalled – Remove the battery from your camera immediately and don’t use it.
• If the 9th character is any other letter or number, your battery is not being recalled and you can continue using it

If you do have a recalled battery, you need to contact Nikon to arrange for a free replacement. Check out the process for doing this on Nikon’s recall page. Unfortunately all recalled batteries must be returned to Nikon and can’t be returned to the authorized retailer where the camera/battery was purchased.

Readers, have you been affected by this recall?