Shops ordered to pay £20m over 'toxic sofas'

A number of High Street chains has been ordered to pay up to £20m ($31m) to 2,000 people who received chemical burns from sofas.

The victims are expected to get £1,200-£9,000 each plus other expenses for loss of weddings, holidays and wages.

The group that owns Argos and Homebase, furniture chain Walmsleys and other smaller firms had admitted liability for selling the Chinese-made sofas.

Some Land of Leather customers will not get a pay-out, after an earlier ruling.

Richard Langton, solicitor for law firm Russell Jones and Walker, said: "People's lives were put on hold. Some people thought that they were dying, that they had skin cancer.

"Their doctors couldn't tell them what was wrong. A lot of psychological symptoms.

Burned through clothes

"Some cases were not so severe, fortunately, but for many people they say it was the worst period of their lives ever."

Mr Langton said there would be another hearing on 21 May when 2,500 further cases would be considered.

The £20m figure includes legal costs, as well as compensation.

Up to 100,000 of the sofas were sold with a fungicidal chemical inside, to stop the furniture going mouldy in storage.

When the sofas went into people's homes the solid sachets changed into gas that burned through clothes and on to skin.

An earlier hearing ruled more than 300 customers who bought from the now bust Land of Leather will not receive pay-outs.