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What is Furniture fire safety regulations?
Last verified 31 October 2026
The furniture fire safety regulations are the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, which set fire resistance and labelling rules for upholstered furniture, and the reason GOV.UK says furniture and furnishings a landlord supplies must be fire safe.
Why it matters to landlords
If you let a property furnished, whatever you supply counts: sofas, armchairs and similar upholstered items. The regulations deal with upholstery, filling materials and covers, and they include provisions on display labels and permanent labels, on second-hand furniture and on a prohibition on supply. Goods made before 1950 are excluded under regulation 4.
The practical check is simple. When you buy new, keep the receipt and look for the permanent label. When you buy second-hand or inherit furniture from a previous let, check each piece has a legible permanent label before you offer it to a tenant, and replace any piece that does not. If you are unsure about a particular piece, ask your council's trading standards team.
Example
Aisha is furnishing a two-bedroom flat in Manchester before a 1 March 2027 start. She buys a new sofa and two armchairs, photographs the permanent labels and saves the invoices. A second-hand armchair from a charity shop has its label cut off, so she returns it and buys a new one.