Accessory not supported intermittent

I bought a bunch of cables on line and have placed them in hubs round my office and other places at home. However, unless they're plugged into an apple charger or directly into a usb wall charger, I keep getting error messages about "accessory not supported." What is particularly troubling is that the message is not consistent. At times, it appears to be charging (lightening symbol) and at other times, not. I have cable plugged directly into my computer, varied the cables, and still get this error message. I have learned that not all hubs are charging hubs and I have avoided those, but why the inconsistency?