In the kitchen, GFCI protection is required on all outlets serving the countertop areas (including all of your backsplash receptacles) and any outlets within 4 feet of a sink. Typically you need GFCI protection on all receptacles in bathrooms, on easily accessible outlets in garages and basements, and on most outdoor outlets. But most codes follow the same standard, the National Electrical Code book, or NEC. Now that you've answered the question "Why do I need ground fault circuit interrupters?" the next question to ask is " Where do I need ground fault circuit interrupters?" The most detailed answer lies with your local building department, which has the final word on electrical system requirements for homes in your area.
And that's why you need ground fault circuit interrupters in the bathroom, among other places. In other words, you don’t have to be dimwitted or even extremely late to put yourself at risk. The faucet may be connected to metal water pipes, which are likely to be grounded, thus creating an attractive avenue for the electrical current. Even if you're not careless enough to use a hair dryer while bathing, you could easily create a ground path for a fault by holding the dryer in one hand and touching the metal on a sink faucet.
Now, if the dryer is plugged into a GFCI outlet, the outlet will sense a leak, or imbalance, in the current and trip its own internal breaker, cutting the power and stopping the shock short. Along the way, the electrical current can stop the body's heart. Since the hand is connected to the body and the body is sitting in water, the body creates a relatively convenient path for the electricity to get to the water (electricity likes water because it's a pretty good conductor, providing easy travel). Another is that the dryer malfunctions and develops a short (say, a wire comes loose inside), allowing electricity to pass through the dryer's handle and into the user's hand. One ugly possibility is that the user drops the dryer into the water. Let's look at the classic example of a dimwitted (or seriously time-crunched) person using a hair dryer in a bathtub. A ground fault is a potentially dangerous (but not uncommon) situation in which electrical current follows an unintended path. Ground fault circuit interrupters do exactly what their name implies they interrupt a circuit experiencing a ground fault. Just to be clear on terminology, electrocution is a shock, and it's the last one you'll ever get, at least in this lifetime. The second reason is that GFCIs help protect against dangerous electrical shock, including electrocution. Most local building codes require GFCI protection on receptacles (outlets) and some other devices in wet areas, work areas and outdoors (more on that later). There are really only 2 reasons why you need ground fault circuit interrupters, or GFCIs, but they're both very, very good reasons.
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