Furniture Regulations

All furniture in tenanted residential properties must comply with the 1993 amendments to the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988. This covers the supplying, hiring or lending of specified goods, upholstered furniture and certain furnishings.

These regulations apply to the following:

Arm chairs, three piece suites, sofas, sofa beds, futons and other convertible furniture.

Beds, bed bases and headboards, mattresses, divans pillows and nursery furniture.

Garden furniture which could be used indoors.

Loose, stretch and fitted covers for furniture, scatter cushions and seat pads.

Furniture that complies will carry a manufacturer’s label which must not be removed.

All upholstered items must have fire resistant filling material, must pass the "match resistance test" and the "cigarette test" as prescribed.

Bed bases and mattresses are not required to bear a permanent label but compliance will be indicated if the item has a label stating that it meets BS7177

If you are buying furniture new there should not be a problem, however the issue comes when using second hand furniture. This is when you must ensure that the correct labels are in place.If this is not done then you could be open to prosecution by putting tenants in a potentially dangerous and hazardous position. Failure to comply with the current safety regulations is a criminal offence and can result a fine of £5,000 per item.A further problem of not supplying compliant furniture is that your property insurance may be invalidated.

For further details of the regulations then follow the link

http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file24685.pdf