Chemical flame retardants (CFRs) have previously been widely used in upholstered furniture across the USA, in order to meet furniture fire safety standard requirements. However an extensive body of evidence demonstrates that CFRs can negatively impact human and environmental health, without offering a fire safety benefit. Regulatory reform as a result of this evidence has enabled manufacturers in the USA to move away from the use of harmful CFRs and transition to alternative fire safety solutions. Furthermore, recently published data shows that this standard update has not resulted in an increase in upholstered furniture related fire deaths, demonstrating effective, safe and sustainable fire safety is possible without the use of harmful CFRs.
California’s fire safety regulation evolution
The US state of California introduced the furniture flammability standard Technical Bulletin 117 (TB117) in 1975, before going on to being used across the USA1. Included in this standard was the requirement for furniture to pass an ‘open flame’ test. Upholstered furniture manufacturers relied upon the use of high levels of chemical flame retardants (CFRs), however, to meet the ‘open flame’ test requirements. Research has shown that the use of CFRs in furniture results in increased exposure of the public and environment to harmful CFRs, with detrimental effects to health and without providing measurable fire safety benefits2–5.
Following years of scientific evidence gathering and advocacy, a revised standard know as TB117-2013 came into force in California in 2014, and has subsequently been applied across the USA. Importantly this revised standard removed the requirement for an ‘open flame’ test and instead requires a ‘smoulder’ test. These revisions have had a positive impact, enabling manufacturers to meet the standard requirements without the use of harmful CFRs and instead utilising effective alternative fire safety design solutions, such as fire barrier materials6. California has since gone on to ban the sale of upholstered furniture containing CFRs above threshold values in 2020, and recently there have been calls to ban CFRs at any concentration1, 7.
California fire death rates
What impact has this change to fire safety standards in California had? New data published by the Green Science Policy Institute from the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, has shown that since the new standard (TB117-2013) was implemented, the number of deaths in California as a result of upholstered furniture fires (between 2005 and 2025), has not increased compared to the level proceeding the introduction of the revised standard2. This is important, as the data demonstrates that the revision of the standard has not resulted in an increase in upholstered furniture fire deaths, while it has enabled manufacturers to move away from the use of CFRs and implement alternative fire safety solutions. This has resulted in a reduction in the exposure of the public to CFRs, while also ensuring effective, safe and sustainable fire safety in upholstered furniture.
Credit – Green Science Policy Insitute2
Reduced public exposure to CFRs
The new TB117-2013 standard has had a positive impact in reducing the public’s exposure to CFRs in California. To confirm that the new standard decreased public exposure to CFRs, researchers measured the levels of certain CFRs in the bodies of participating members of the public8. Participants with furniture compliant with the old standard (TB117) provided samples, then the old furniture was replaced with new furniture compliant with the revised standard (TB117-2013) before participants provided samples again approximately 1 year later. The results, recently published in ‘Environmental Pollution’, showed that levels of certain CFRs associated with use in furniture fell 2-4 times faster in the bodies of participants who replaced their old furniture with new furniture. This evidence demonstrated that updating California’s flammability standard was effective in reducing furniture consumers’ exposure to CFRs.
“This study shows that the update to California’s flammability standard not only changed what goes into furniture—it changed what goes into people’s bodies” said co-lead author Kathleen Attfield, a Research Scientist Supervisor with the California Department of Public Health.
What does this mean for the UK?
The UK’s current Furniture Fire Safety Regulations 1988 (FFRs) have some similarities with the old California TB117 standard, with both requiring an ‘open flame’ test. The UK’s current outdated FFRs, have led to the use of high amounts of CFRs in upholstered furniture in order to meet testing requirements.
Research has shown that UK fire deaths have decreased at a similar rate to many comparable nations around the world, all of which have less prescriptive or no furniture fire safety testing regulation9. Many of these countries use alternative fire safety methods which do not require the use of CFRs, such as fire barrier materials, to provide effective fire safety. These falling fire death rates across different nations have been attributed to factors such as increased fire safety awareness, changing smoking habits and increased installation of smoke detectors.
Comparison of fire related deaths per 100,000 population across nations (1990-2019)9
In March 2026, the UK government published long awaited proposed changes to the UK’s FFRs, which would include the UK following the USA and moving to a ‘smoulder’ test. This presents an important opportunity to reduce the use of CFRs in upholstered furniture, enable innovation in furniture design and reduce public and environmental exposure to CFRs. The proposals are open to public consultation here (Deadline 23rd June 2026).
Summary
California’s revision to furniture fire safety standards offer an important example of how the use of CFRs in furniture can be reduced while maintaining effective fire safety. As data shows, fire fatalities as a result of upholstery fires have not increased following the implementation of the updated TB117-2013 standard. This demonstrates that manufacturers can move away from the use of CFRs and maintain effective fire safety while using safe and sustainable alternatives.
Progress made in the USA demonstrates how the UK can revise current outdated FFRs, to reflect modern real world scenarios and innovations in furniture design, reduce CFR use and exposure, and maintain effective fire safety. Proposed changes to the UK FFRs are a positive step forward in moving away from chemicals and protecting human, wildlife and wider environmental health. Stakeholders can respond to the consultation on these proposed changes until the 23rd June 2026.
References
1. Green Science Policy Institute (2026) Flame Retardants in Furniture Green Science Policy Institute. Retrieved online from: https://greensciencepolicy.org/our-work/furniture/.
2. Green Science Policy Institute (2026) Webinar Recap: Purchasing Fire-Safe Healthier Furniture Retrieved online from: https://greensciencepolicy.org/news-events/blog/webinar-recap-purchasing-fire-safe-healthier-furniture.
3. Page J, Whaley P, Bellingham M, Birnbaum LS, Cavoski A, Fetherston Dilke D, Garside R, Harrad S, Kelly F, Kortenkamp A, Martin O, Stec A, & Woolley T (2023) A new consensus on reconciling fire safety with environmental & health impacts of chemical flame retardants Environ Int, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2023.107782.
4. Babrauskas V, Blum A, Daley R, & Birnbaum L (2011) Flame retardants in furniture foam: benefits and risks Fire Safety Science 10 265–278.
5. Green Science Policy Institute Map: Wildlife Polluted by Flame Retardants on Massive Scale Retrieved online May 5, 2026 from: https://greensciencepolicy.org/harmful-chemicals/flame-retardants/wildlife-map.
6. Fidra (2026) Evidence Review: Fire Barriers Retrieved online from: https://fidra.org.uk/download/evidence-review-fire-barriers/.
7. Volz DC (2025) A Proposal to Permanently Ban Flame Retardant Chemicals to Meet California’s Flammability Standard for Upholstered Furniture Environ Sci Technol 59(17) 8298–8300, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5c03121.
8. Attfield KR, Berger K, Dodson RE, Bennett DH, Rodgers KM, Moran R, Stoiber T, Wang Y, Gao S, Smith SC, Park JS, Blum A, & Wu N (2025) Flame retardant biomarker changes with furniture replacement after flammability standard update Environmental Pollution, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.127326.
9. Lane JA, & Hull RT (2024) Variation of flammability and smoke toxicity of upholstered furniture composites with fire retardant treatment J Mater Sci Technol, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmst.2024.02.034.