Cheap Sofas are Death Traps

Deathtrap sofas are still on sale in south Essex
23rd December 2008
TRAVELLERS from Crays Hill are still selling potentially deadly furniture from Poland.
Men from Dale Farm are selling the deathtraps across south Essex, London and Cambridgeshire.
Essex Trading Standards spent months investigating the camp following a previous Echo expose into the dodgy trade, but closed the case, saying there was no evidence of sofas on the site.
Yet undercover reporters bought the dangerous furniture from an Irish traveller in a pub car park in broad daylight. The man bragged of selling up to 12 suites a day and supplying estate agents.
Posing as landlords, our reporters bought a black PVC suite containing foam which failed strict UK furniture fire safety regulations when tested by experts, under controlled conditions.
They cut out a piece of the foam and set fire to it to see if it met safety standards.
Dale Brockbank, of West Yorkshire Joint Services test house, where the experiment was conducted, said: “This foam was horrendous and led to escalating combustion which had to be extinguished because it was unsafe to continue.
“It was so badly made, they used off cuts of foam to save on cost.”
The sub-standard PVC suites originate from Poland where labels are attached, which falsely claim they meet UK safety standards.
However, they turn into toxic fireballs on contact with a flame, leaving unsuspecting families little time to escape choking fumes.
During a separate fire test done by the Echo, a two-seater sofa caught fire within 30 seconds of being exposed to a flame and was a fireball within four minutes.
In March 2006 our previous investigation found shop Furniture Store in Southernhay, Basildon, was selling similar suites for £269 a piece.
At the same time regular Polish HGV loads of the furniture were delivered to the traveller site.
We published pictures of suites stored at the camp and being hawked at a boot sale.
Furniture Store was ordered to pay £10,000 including costs and fines at Basildon Magistrates’ Court.
However, trading standards said no furniture was ever found at Dale Farm and stopped investigating.
Yet aerial photographs taken by an Echo photographer, since the trading standards probe show what appear to be suites concealed by tarpaulin on a number of caravan pitches at Dale Farm.

Want to go to jail? Then ignore the RRO

First landlord in London imprisoned for fire safety breaches
21 October 2008
A landlord has been sent to prison in the first custodial sentence to be given in London under the new fire safety regulations.
Mr Mehmat Parlak was sentenced to four months imprisonment and his company, Watchacre properties limited, were fined £21,000 following conviction for serious breaches of the regulatory reform order (RRO).
The prosecution followed a fatal fire at a flat on Ruskin Road, Tottenham on 16 September 2007. After being removed from the building by firefighters, a man was taken to hospital but died later from his injuries.
Councillor Brian Coleman AM FRSA, Chairman of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority which runs the London Fire Brigade said “This fire resulted in a man dying and highlights why landlords and businesses must take their responsibilities under the regulatory reform order seriously. The London Fire Brigade works hard to bring irresponsible companies and individuals to court, which can as this case has shown result in a custodial sentence.”
Sentencing of the company and their Director Mr Parlak, of Wellington Road, Enfield took place at Wood Green Crown Court on 20 October after they pleaded guilty to eight breaches of fire safety.
The eight summonses were as follows:
Summons 1 – Article 9 – Failure to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to which relevant persons were exposed.
Summons 2 – Article 11 (1) – Failure to make and give effect to appropriate fire safety arrangements.
Summons 3 – Article 13 (1)(1) – Failure to provide appropriate fire fighting equipment.
Summons 4 – Article 13 (1)(a) – Failure to provide appropriate fire detection measures, namely adequate smoke alarms in the common parts of the premises.
Summons 5 – Article 14 (1) – Failure to ensure that routes to emergency exits from the premises and the exits were clear (in relation to the gas fired boiler).
Summons 6 – Article 14 (2)(a) – Failure to ensure that persons were able to evacuate the premises as quickly and safely as possible, in that the escape route was not properly protected (because the intermescent strip and cold smoke seal were missing from the top edge of the second floor habitable room and there were combustible materials stored in the exit route including a washing machine, television, clothing and furniture).
Summons 7 – Article 14 (2)(g) – Failure to ensure that there was adequate signage at the premises to indicate the emergency exit and route.
Summons 8 – Article 15 (1) - Failure to establish and give effect to appropriate procedures to be followed in the event of serious and imminent fire. The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 came into effect on Sunday, 1 October 2006. The legislation makes businesses responsible for carrying out a self assessment of the fire risks in their premises, appoint a competent person and make staff aware of what they have to do in the event of a fire.

Have you got loads of money to waste? If so ignore the RRO

Cheshire firm fined £20,000 for fire safety offences
Dec 9 2008 Chester Chronicle
BUSINESSES across Cheshire have been urged to ensure they are complying with fire safety legislation following a case in which a company was fined £20,000 after pleading guilty to five offences.
The firm were convicted at Runcorn Magistrates Court of serious offences under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety Order) 2005, and as well as the fine, they were ordered to pay costs of £10,000.
It was the first prosecution to be brought by Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service under the legislation and they are hoping it will remind other companies of the seriousness of failing to comply.
“We take our responsibilities under the fire safety regulations extremely seriously and always work hard with local businesses to try to find the right solutions,” said Deputy Chief Fire Officer Mark Cashin.
“Prosecution is very much a last resort but in serious cases we will use our powers to enforce the regulations and prosecute offenders. Today’s case is the first one to be brought by ourselves under the new Fire Safety Order and we hope that it serves as a message to companies across Cheshire, Halton and Warrington of the importance of fire safety in the workplace.
“Our aim is to work closely with local companies to ensure the safety of both their staff and their customers and we would urge people to contact their local fire protection staff for advice and guidance.”
Issues found by fire safety inspectors during a visit to the Widnes premises included:
An external staircase seriously obstructed with gas cylinders nearby
Fire exit doors which could not be opened or were heavily obstructed
Exit routes which were heavily obstructed and had no lighting or signs
Combustible material stored against a boundary fence of an adjacent tanker storage area
Fire extinguishers had either been discharged or were empty.