Watchdog - Making small claims

It's the latest twist in a story Watchdog has been following since February 2008. Sofas containing sachets of a dangerous chemical were sold by three high street retailers. Thousands who purchased the affected sofas went on to suffer chemical burns. 2,000 victims are now involved in a group action, most of whom bought from three main retailers; Argos, Land of Leather and Walmsleys.

The three high street stores may face more than £10m in compensation and legal costs, the claimants' lawyers say, making it "the largest group compensation claim ever seen in British Courts".

Contesting liability

Argos and Walmsleys have admitted liability and said they wanted compensation claims for proven injuries agreed as quickly as possible. However, Land of Leather went into administration in January 2009. Now its insurer, Zurich, is contesting its liability to pay compensation to victims.

The judge has given the insurance company 21 days to confirm whether or not they will cover claims for those who bought affected Land of Leather sofas.

Watchdog was the first to identify the cause of the problems - a sachet of a highly sensitising chemical placed in the sofas by the manufacturers in China to prevent mould growth.

The majority of the sofas were manufactured by one Chinese firm, Linkwise. However, in October last year, Watchdog was also the first to identify a second Chinese manufacturer linked to the problem - Eurosofa. Victims who bought these sofas made by this company also suffered burns.

The burns were caused by sachets of a dangerous biocide, Di- Methyl Fumarate, placed in the furniture by the manufacturers in China. DMF is a highly sensitising agent, used to prevent mould growth on leather in humid climates.

Total ban

The EU has recently announced a total ban on DMF used in any products being imported into member states.

The ban will become law on 1 May. The EU has also ordered a full recall of any products known to have contained DMF. What form the ban will take is up to authorities in each member state. BERR (the government department responsible) is still deciding on what the UK recall will involve.

The case is believed to be the largest ever group compensation claim in British courts.

Watch the last Watchdog report on the toxic sofas.

Read the list of known affected sofas.