North Tyneside Council Trading Standards has destroyed unlabelled, unsafe and flammable furniture after a local retailer was found to be stocking items including armchairs, sofas and mattresses that failed to meet fire safety standards.
Items including armchairs and sofas were on sale with no labelling (image credit: North Tyneside Trading Standards)
The Trading Standards team became aware of the situation after receiving a complaint about furniture being sold without the legally required safety labelling. Officers visited the trader, based in South Shields, and provided advice about labelling and product safety. They also issued a suspension notice to prevent distribution of the products while testing was organised.
The products were destroyed after failing safety tests (image credit: North Tyneside Trading Standards)
Three armchairs were tested for compliance with flammability requirements, and one electric flame effect cabinet was tested for compliance with electrical safety requirements. All items failed the tests.
The upholstered furniture did not comply with The Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. Not only were the items unlabelled – therefore failing to provide safety warnings or traceability information – they were also highly flammable.
The electric flame effect cabinets did not comply with The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 or The Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994. The items were unlabelled, had no CE/UKCA marks, had no traceability information and no instructions. They also had a European style 2 pin plug attached which had no fuse and did not conform to the British Standard.
Following the failed tests the trader agreed to voluntary surrender 27 sofas, 24 armchairs, 48 dining chairs, 3 bed bases, 3 mattresses and 14 electric flame effect cabinets. All of the items were subsequently destroyed.
