Buying new furniture can be exciting, but it’s important to install your new item, securely, to prevent it from toppling over and causing serious injury or even death.

Furniture, such as chests of drawers, wardrobes, bookcases, cabinets, TV or entertainment units or other tall items, can pose serious risks and potentially tragic outcomes. Young children, especially, can try to climb on, or pull themselves up on furniture. If unsecured, these often very heavy items can fall over, causing serious head or crush injuries, suffocation, and even death.

Since 2000, 28 Australians, including 17 children aged under five, have died from furniture toppling onto them. More than 900 people are injured every year, with very young children and older Australians at greatest risk.

As of 3 May 2024, new rules were introduced to warn consumers, at point of sale, the need to securely anchor furniture to the floor or a wall. Some furniture is supplied with anchoring hardware, and it’s also readily available at hardware stores.

Our national consumer watchdog, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), will require furniture suppliers to provide you with safety warnings and advice on ways to reduce toppling furniture incidents.

Furniture suppliers will have 12 months to implement the new standards which include attaching a permanent warning label to furniture, safety information and advice about anchoring furniture in manuals and assembly instructions, and providing warnings, in furniture stores and online, about the hazards of toppling furniture.

Businesses who fail to comply with the new standards within 12 months could face hefty fines.

As well as anchoring furniture, other ways you can keep furniture safe is to store heaviest items in the bottom drawers or shelves as top-heavy furniture tips over more easily, don’t place heavy items such as TVs, or items that are attractive to children, on top of furniture, and put locking devices on drawers to stop children opening them and using them as steps.

People renting properties are allowed to fix furniture and appliances to walls with permission of their landlord or agent, who is not allowed to refuse permission except in limited circumstances, such as heritage listing issues or asbestos concerns.

You can find the new standards, and helpful ways to keep your furniture safe, on the ACCC website.

Call at Consumer Protection on 1300 30 40 54 if you have any questions about toppling furniture, or email consumer@demirs.wa.gov.au