National foreword

This British Standard is the UK implementation of EN 581‑2:2026. It supersedes BS EN 581‑2:2015, which is withdrawn.

The UK participation in its preparation was entrusted to Technical Committee FW/0/2, Domestic and Contract Furniture.

A list of organizations represented on this committee can be obtained on request to its committee manager.

Contractual and legal considerations

This publication has been prepared in good faith, however no representation, warranty, assurance or undertaking (express or implied) is or will be made, and no responsibility or liability is or will be accepted by BSI in relation to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness or reasonableness of this publication. All and any such responsibility and liability is expressly disclaimed to the full extent permitted by the law.

This publication is provided as is, and is to be used at the recipient’s own risk.

The recipient is advised to consider seeking professional guidance with respect to its use of this publication.

This publication is not intended to constitute a contract. Users are responsible for its correct application.

Compliance with a British Standard cannot confer immunity from legal obligations.

This British Standard was published under the authority of the Standards Policy and Strategy Committee on 31 May 2026.

This European Standard was approved by CEN on 13 April 2026.

CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CEN member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and United Kingdom.

European foreword

This document (EN 581‑2:2026) has been prepared by Technical Committee CEN/TC 207 “Furniture”, the secretariat of which is held by UNI.

This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an identical text or by endorsement, at the latest by November 2026, and conflicting national standards shall be withdrawn at the latest by November 2026.

Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent rights. CEN shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.

This document supersedes EN 581‑2:2015.

EN 581‑2:2026 includes the following significant technical changes with respect to EN 581‑2:2015:

new definitions for camping use, domestic use for contract use have been added;
general safety requirements has been added;
updated seating requirements for stability to take into account new edition of EN 1022:2023;
updated requirements for seating and clarification of the application of certain tests with footnote to tables;
Annex A (normative) “Test method for deckchair” has been added;
Annex B (informative) “Test method for folding lounger” has been added;
Annex C (informative) “Guide to facilitate the identification of deckchairs” has been added;
Annex D (informative) “Purchase information (guidelines)” has replaced Annex B;
Annex A “Forward and sideways stability tests for loungers” has been deleted;
clarification of the instruction for use;
clarification of the rearward stability test for camping use.

Any feedback and questions on this document should be directed to the users’ national standards body. A complete listing of these bodies can be found on the CEN website.

According to the CEN-CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organisations of the following countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and the United Kingdom.

1 Scope

This document specifies the minimum requirements for general safety and structural safety which include strength, reliability and stability of all types of outdoor seating for camping use, for domestic use and for contract use, for adults, without regard to materials, design or manufacturing processes.

It does not apply to street furniture.

It does not include requirements for removable upholstery, including the cover and filling.

It does not include requirements for the durability of castors/wheels and height adjustment mechanisms.

It does not include requirements for electrical safety.

It does not include requirements for the resistance to ageing and degradation caused by light, temperature and moisture.

The test requirements contained within this document are based on use by persons weighing up to 110 kg.

2 Normative references

3 Terms and definitions

4 Testing

5 Test equipment

5.1 General

5.2

6 Determination of the loading points

6.1 General

6.2

7 Safety requirements for loungers

7.1 General safety requirements

7.2 Stability and structural safety

8 Safety requirements for other seating

8.1 General safety requirements

8.2 Stability and structural safety

9 Information for use

9.1 General

9.2 Marking for loungers

10 Test report