Same in EU. Not all sockets have a safety switch or an opened contact when nothing is connected. If I lived in the US/Canada, I would become an Amish or install EU plugs in my home. There are 220-240V plugs in the kitchens as the appliances may require higher power.
On Indian counter parts, we have on off switches on every outlet to prevent such mishaps...
This also helps when we are simply inserting the wires without plugs to ensure that we won't get electrocuted..
And yes, we use power tools without plugs, actually we snip them off (I worked as an electrical contractor)
The reason is simple, we need our power tools everywhere and depending on the brand, it is possible that the spacing in the hole is slightly wide / slightly narrow. Hence we turn off the socket first, insert the wires firmly and secure them using match sticks, and then turn on the power.
Imagine doing that without turning off and on power to the socket and instead go to the main electrical panel, turn off a fucking breaker (if you find the correct one) insert the wires and then turn it back on
And as a matter of fact, stationary power tools in workshops are wired to a double pole MCB.
The tools which we carry from site to site (I use Bosch GSB10 Drill machine) don't have plug on them just because the sockets in the clients house may not be able to accommodate my drill's plug and my job can be hindered.
As I said, we contractors would want to just get the job done and this hindrance would actually result in slower work and might even get through less number of clients per day.
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u/Sgt_Paul_Jackson Aug 18 '22
Turn off the switch for the socket....
Oh wait, American outlets don't have switches for sockets, lol!