With the reform of the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 under review, we explore opinions from some key voices in the furniture trade.
With the consultation closing on 23 June 2026, the Office for Product Safety & Standards (OPSS) is seeking views on important reforms to how it regulates the fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture.
The proposals reflect the policy aim to maintain a high level of fire safety while meaningfully reducing chemical flame retardant use. The Government will introduce new furniture fire safety requirements based on a smoulder test; put in place pragmatic testing solutions to facilitate innovation; and make proportionate scope adjustments.
Responding to the regulation reform, Tony Attard, OBE, DL, founder and chairman of the Panaz Group as well as Chair of the British Furniture Confederation (BFC), said: “We should not be sacrificing safety from fires based on unproven fears of chemical treatments in foams or fabrics.”
The British Furniture Association (BFA) said: “We are working with the Government on the fire safety regulations consultation proposals. The BFA’s Code of Practice stipulates that all manufacturer members must comply with fire safety legislation to ensure every British-made product meets the highest safety standards. We will continue to lead discussions with our members and government to reach a solution that moves the regulations forward, but at the same time, prevents unsafe products from reaching the UK market.”
Siren Furniture said: “Fire Safety will continue to be a priority at Siren Furniture. We share the opinion that the evidence does not support a direct causal link between chemical flame retardants and consumer safety; that similar patterns of reductions in fire deaths are found in other countries that do not use chemical flame retardants. We also share the concern that the risks posed by chemical flame retardants need to be addressed, and both fire and chemical safety need to be balanced. We, therefore, broadly support the proposed government changes. We believe that a ‘smoulder test’ will both continue to provide adequate consumer safety and allow for a reduction in potentially harmful chemicals. We also believe that it will also benefit the industry by lowering barriers to trade with our neighbours in Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland bought about by the administrative burdens of the current regulations.”
West Midlands Upholstery said: “For years, employees in the furniture manufacturing industry may have been unknowingly exposed to risks from chemicals used in foam and fabric fire retardancy treatments. If the proposed new smoulder test can ensure that safety standards are met whilst minimising the use of chemicals, it’s difficult to see this as anything other than positive progress.”
Coakley & Cox said: “With the reform of the regulations under review, our concerns are limited. However, it is important that the process is completed as quickly as possible for the benefit of UK consumers. From an industry perspective, it strengthens our ability to export upholstery globally and may also help reduce the cost of foam, particularly given recent price increases. Countries such as the USA have long banned the use of certain fire retardants, meaning we already work with non-FR foams imported from Europe. Fire-related deaths linked to upholstered furniture, although recorded slightly differently across regions, remain broadly in line with UK figures despite the absence of FR chemicals. This supports the view that their use is no longer necessary, a point also highlighted in the Government’s proposals.”
Mobus Fabrics said: “I have a number of concerns to the OPSS proposals. If we go back five or six years, the original OPSS objectives were: Maintain fire safety standards; Innovate; Develop new manufacturing techniques; Reduce FR chemical in furniture. This original approach is correct and we agree with this 100%. Mobus have been innovating for many years and we have a lot of new FR finishes that doesn’t use any FR chemicals – we have many others that use significantly less chemicals and more sustainable chemicals. The change from the OPSS to remove the flame test is a significant reduction in fire safety standards, which is contradictory to the original direction and a big concern.
“Mobus has also pioneered many new technologies and we have a number of chemical free fabrics already selling in the UK. We also have a number of fabrics which use significantly less chemicals and incorporate technical laminations and coating. Mobus has a patent which we will open source and allow competitors to use – this will help others reduce their chemical footprint and support the entire sector achieve the original OPSS objectives – which we were ambitious but balancing fire safety and chemical reduction soundly.”
Tokyo Fabrics said: “With over three decades of industry experience, built on integrity and credibility under the leadership of our founder and Chairman Mr. Tarsem Singh Sandhu, our business began in response to a simple but serious concern: the prevalence of non-compliant FR-treated fabrics in the UK market. That concern became the foundation of our work as ethical FR coaters, growing into one of Europe’s largest operations.
“The proposed shift from a flame test to a smoulder test is not a minor technical adjustment. It is a fundamental change with potentially far-reaching consequences at a national level. The current debate, in places, is being shaped by selective interpretation and uneven reporting. But the evidence remains consistent: properly treated FR fabrics play a vital role in reducing fire-related harm and preventing avoidable loss of life.
“The Government has stated that the change is intended to reduce the use of chemical flame retardants due to these perceived health and environmental concerns. Yet these substances are already tightly controlled under UK REACH, the UK’s dedicated chemicals regime, which applies a rigorous, science-led process to assessing safety for public health and environmental damage. By passing UK REACH’s responsibilities, by undermining established fire safety standards, will endanger public safety. The flame-retardant back coatings used in our fabrics fully comply with these standards.
“Reversing some of the strongest fire safety standards in the world would, in our view, mark a clear step backwards. It risks undoing decades of progress built on hard lessons, and it challenges a principle that should never be compromised: even one preventable loss of life is one too many.”
www.gov.uk/government/consultations/product-regulation-fire-safety-of-domestic-upholstered-furniture
