Candle fire safety

Candles look and smell lovely in your home, but can be a fire risk if not managed carefully. Here, you’ll find some important safety tips to keep you and your family safe.

Safety advice

The safest way to avoid the risk of fire is to swap wax candles for flameless candles, which are either battery-operated or plugged into your mains electricity.

However, if you prefer to use real candles and tealights, here are some important safety tips:

• never leave them unattended and always put them out before going to sleep
• candles should always be in heat-resistant holders and placed on a stable surface where they won’t be knocked over
• keep candles away from things that might catch fire – like curtains, furniture, clothes and hair
• be careful of draughts and open windows that could blow items onto a candle or knock them over
• be aware that tea lights get very hot, and without proper holders, they can melt through plastic surfaces like a television
• to avoid accidents, keep candles and other naked flames out of the reach of children and pets
• be especially careful if you have a lot of flammable items in your home, like collections of books, magazines or papers
• be careful that nothing drops into a candle or tea light and creates a second wick. This can increase the heat and intensity of the flame the candle produces
• always ensure the smoke alarms fitted in your home are working and test them regularly
  
  

Additional safety advice

You can get more information about candle safety from the London Fire Brigade.