A popular Christmas gift has been pulled from Kmart shelves over concerns some components can overheat, melt, or even catch fire – but a recall has not been issued.

Kmart quality teams said they were investigating claims a remote-controlled quad bike toy sold by the retail giant could become dangerous while charging, with several images posted to social media showing charging components melted through.

However the 2.4Ghz ATV Madness remote-control quad bike is not under recall.

Father Cory Freeman said his eight-year-old son’s Christmas present became a danger while charging, after the cable caught fire.

The charger had melted by the time Mr Freeman put out the fire. Photo: Cory Freeman

“I put the kids to bed and I thought I’d charge his toy for him for the morning, so he can play with it again,” he said.

“My partner had gone outside and gone back in and said ‘I smell something’.

“I looked into the corner, at the power point where the charger was plugged in, and the USB cable was on fire.

“If I’d kept walking around the house a couple more minutes it probably would have really caught on and burnt the wall and burnt the house up.”

Several Australians have described similar issues with the toy on social media — with many, including Mr Freeman having obtained a refund from Kmart.

Investigation by Kmart quality team pending

A spokeswoman for the department store said the decision was made to withdraw the toys from sale on Thursday.

“At Kmart, we take the quality and safety of our products very seriously, which is why we made the decision to withdraw the remote-control quad bike from sale, pending investigation from our quality team,” she said.

“Kmart is committed to product and customer safety and we are working as quickly as possible to review and test this product.

“We encourage any customers who have experienced problems, or who have concerns, to please contact the customer service team on 1800 124 125.”

Mr Freeman said he wanted to warn other parents to treat the toy with caution.

“Luckily I [charged] it in the lounge room this night, because a lot of the time I’ll put it in his bedroom,” Mr Freeman said.

“It was the first toy he opened out of the box pretty much, the first thing he wanted. And now he’s got nothing.

“A family in the house is more valuable than a … remote-control car.”

-ABC