Every year Christmas light displays seem to get bigger and brighter, with neighbours trying to out-do each other, sometimes raising money for charity in the process.  It's become such a big part of the season that there are even programmes on television documenting the lengths people will go to for a unique light display on their home.  Once you've wrapped some presents and treated yourself to a mince pie or two these shows make for some enjoyable watching.  However, one was not for the faint of heart when it comes to ladder safety and working at height; it was a Christmas miracle that no-one was hurt during filming! At points in the programme they showed homeowners balancing precariously on their rooftops, climbing onto the roof from ladders that only just reached the roofline and other dangerous acts.  If the garishness of some of the lights wasn't enough to put you on edge, then the total disregard for safety would definitely have had you on the edge of your seat.  It was nice to see, however, that at least one of the homes featured in the show was fitted with a proper loft ladder; one can only imagine how some of the people accessed their attic! Doctors in America are issuing warnings about using ladders to hang Christmas lights, as they see an increase in the number of ladder-related falls at this time of year.  Being on the roof and being inexperienced at working at height can be deadly; a doctor in Iowa saw a ladder injury every day during the first week of December, one of which was fatal.  It is estimated that emergency departments across America see an average of 250 injuries caused by hanging Christmas lights every day in November and December. It's not just climbing the ladder that can be dangerous; carrying it comes with some risks as well.  The type of ladder you might need to reach your roof can weigh around 30kg, which is a lot for one person to carry safely, not to mention putting it up and positioning it.  There should always be someone present when hanging Christmas lights, helping out and keeping the ladder steady.  Hiring professionals to hang your lights for you might seem expensive, but when you consider the potential cost of being off work for weeks or even months because of a ladder injury it doesn't seem like such a big outlay. If you want to avoid the hassle of hanging lights entirely, then a new product called the Elf Light allows you to get the effect of strings of lights by projecting thousands of red and green dots onto a surface, such as a tree or house. Using LED bulbs the projector uses just five watts of power which makes it incredibly cheap to run.  It doesn't quite have the same effect as multiple light strings on a whole house, but as a backdrop to some bigger pieces it works very well.  The best thing about it is that no ladders are involved.  The Elf Light is mounted on a spike that can be driven into the ground, or mounted on a stake if there is a lot of snow.  They are not available in the UK yet, but can be purchased online from America. Whether you're putting them up, or taking them down, be careful around your Christmas lights and ladder this year and enjoy your holiday from the comfort of home, rather than hospital.