20 October 2025
As evenings grow darker, candles can bring warmth to our homes, but they’re also a leading cause of fires starting in the home.
Candles cause over 800 fires in UK homes every year, so please be careful when using them and use LED candles for decorations wherever possible.
Always
- Always use a heat resistant holder when burning candles and tealights.
- Always make sure candles are completely out and not still smouldering.
- Always keep candles away from curtains and soft furnishings such as table cloths and cushions.
Avoid
- Avoid putting candles where they might get knocked over or where children and pets could get close to them.
- Avoid putting tealights directly on to baths and TVs. Even though tealights are usually sold in aluminium containers these are not totally heatproof.
Never
- Never place candles or tealights directly on to plastic surfaces.
- Never leave candles burning. You should extinguish candles before you leave a room and never go to sleep with a candle still burning.
- Never burn several candles close together as this might cause flaring (such as tealights).