What Happens to Old Sofas? The UK Furniture Disposal Report

Furniture in Fashion reports that the sofa is the largest object most British households ever dispose of, and now one of the most tightly regulated. With the Environment Agency treating waste domestic upholstered seating as potentially containing persistent organic pollutants, reuse is the only route that keeps a sofa outside controlled waste treatment. The report finds that the outcome is settled in the first days after a household decides to replace: a sofa offered while it is still indoors, clean and carrying its fire label has real prospects, while one left in a garden for a fortnight has almost none. Frames outlast covers by a wide margin, so replacement is nearly always cosmetic. Access is the hidden gatekeeper, with landing turns and 762 mm internal doorways ending more reuse attempts than condition ever does. The report sets out standard UK access dimensions against their implications for sofa removal, and practical guidance on planning the exit at the point of purchase....