The Ladder Association, the not-for-profit lead industry body dedicated to promoting the safe use of portable ladders, has released the headlines from their latest market surveillance study.
They tested 18 telescopic ladders (bought from online marketplaces AND dedicated DIY retailers in-store) to investigate their conformity to product standard EN 131-6. The results?
✅ 4 out of 18 samples passed all of the limited scope requirements (BUT, that’s just 22%) – and all were bought directly from physical stores.
❌ 14 out of 18 samples failed the safety tests – that’s a staggering 78%! Worryingly (but sadly not surprisingly, based on previous studies), every sample bought from a third-party seller via an online platform FAILED.
Keep an eye out for the final and detailed report in the coming weeks!
In the meantime, you can catch up on the Ladder Association’s market surveillance to date on their website:
https://ladderassociation.org.uk/step-up/
