One man has released a warning about knock off accessories that could cause severe injuries to those who are budget conscious after the off brand charger he bought exploded.

Tim Tyrrell said he was just trying to save some money when he turned to eBay to buy a second charger for his iPhone 5 as it was a far cheaper option than buying a brand new apple charger.  

The jolt that left Tyrrell with a serious electrical burn through his hand destroyed his discount charger, tripped the circuit breaker and put Tyrrell in the hospital for more than a week.

"Basically, the charger turned black and, it's where the USB cord connects to the outlet, had a little mini-explosion," Tyrrell explained. "It kind of bruised the fingers inside where I plugged it in."

"I got two wall chargers and a car charger for like, under $10 compared to the $25-30 you pay for an actual charger in the store," Tyrrell said.

The charger that burned out left a quarter-sized wound on Tyrrell's hand that later became infected -- and much more serious. It took three operations to tackle the infection, and Tyrrell's diabetes slowed his recovery while complicating matters.

Accidents like this aren't unique to iPhones either, and it's a problem Apple is well aware of. In fact, the company offered USB chargers at half price in exchange for knock offs last year to get counterfeits off the street. Additionally, those using iOS 7now get a warning message about unreliable accessories that aren't built to Apple's standards.

There have been several documented cases of similar explosions -- even electrocutions linked to counterfeit chargers; however, there are third-party accessories that are Apple-certified. The best advice when looking for off-brand merchandise is to ensure that it is built to the manufacturer's specifications.