If a surge was not due to lightning, then it would have
been one of those other often rare type of events - that the
'whole house' protector also would have protected from. One
protector - properly sized - to protect all machines from the
incoming surge. Or lots of undersized protectors, at greater
costs, that only claim to protect from one all but nonexistent
type of surge.

Jonathan Buzzard guy is still trying to explain how
impedance in wire and the inductance in a light bulb can
create massive surges when power switched.

Mains borne surges are why we use 'whole house' protectors
that are properly sized and that typically cost tens of time
less money per protected appliance.

Jonathan Buzzard wrote:
Cannot be, because according to w_tom such surges don't exist