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Fireworks: The UK Law

Are fireworks legal in the UK?

The supply and use of fireworks is legal in the UK; however, you should be aware of some significant restrictions, which are explained more clearly in the following sections.

Which fireworks are illegal in the UK?

The Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015 list several Category F2 and Category F3 fireworks which retailers cannot sell:

• Aerial wheel
• Banger, flash banger or double banger
• Jumping cracker
• Jumping ground spinner
• Spinner
• Mini rocket
• Shot tube - which produces a report as its principal effect or

(ii)the inside diameter of which is greater than 30mm;

(h)a battery containing bangers, flash bangers or double bangers;

(i)a combination (other than a wheel) which includes one or more bangers, flash bangers or double bangers.

What are the age restrictions for buying fireworks? 

Age matters when it comes to fireworks. There are specific age laws for purchasing different categories of fireworks.

For different fireworks classifications, there are different age restrictions:

• Christmas cracker, 12 years
• Category F1 firework other than a Christmas cracker, 16 years
• Category F2 firework or a Category F3 firework, 18 years
• T1 Theatrical pyrotechnics, 18 years

You might also have heard about Category F4 fireworks and Category T2 pyrotechnics. Suppliers can only supply these to people if they have had approved training when they become Persons With Specialist Knowledge (PWSK). They must also possess public liability insurance and have previously used the products.

Professional fireworks can be hazardous when misused.

What are the time restrictions on when you can let fireworks off?

 

The Fireworks Regulations 2004 state that nobody can use (Category F2 or F3 fireworks, minimum age to purchase 18+ years) adult fireworks during night hours, between 11pm and 7 am, except on the following specific dates.

These are called a "permitted fireworks night":

• beginning at 11 pm on the first day of the Chinese New Year and ending at 1 am the following day;
• beginning at 11 pm and ending at midnight on 5th November
• beginning at 11 pm on the day of Diwali and ending at 1 am the following day; or
• beginning at 11 pm on 31st December and ending at 1 am the following day.

Is it safe to let off fireworks in my garden?

It depends; size matters. Fireworks have several ways of being grouped. They can be by type, such as rocket or single ignition barrage, hazard division, firing pattern, but most importantly, by safety distance. The standards of EN15947:2022 help define the safety distances applied to products, which are either 8 metres (Category F2) or 25 metres (Category F3). However, it's important to note that some suppliers will increase the recommended safety distance for a product based on their assessment. For example, you might see 8 metres on the label and 15 metres on a side graphic. We recommend that the supplier’s distance is an absolute minimum; if possible, use any extra distance if available.

Now that you've considered the distance to the audience, look around where you plan on firing your display. By this, we mean to look to the sides and remember to look up. Are there overhanging trees, power lines, or other obstructions that could deflect a firework? If it's clear overhead, what about the sides? Have you got space on either side to allow for fanned effects, or can you only set off straight-up firing products? Each product on the website has the information you need, including a video to assess a product's suitability for your space.

Lastly, ensure you are familiar with the instructions for each firework you plan on using. We've photographed as many instruction labels as possible so you can read them before purchasing. You might find that you need to bury a product or that it requires a wooden stake to ensure it won't fall over during firing. The labels have lots of information on them to ensure they are set up correctly so that you can have a safe and enjoyable display.

Where can you set off fireworks?

You can only set off fireworks on private land with the owner's permission.

The restriction on where you can use fireworks is in the Explosives Act 1875.

The Act has been amended over the years and says:

“If any person throw, cast, or fire any fireworks in or into any highway, street, thoroughfare, road or public place, he shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale”.

A level 5 fine means an unlimited fine or up to 6 months in prison and applies to any firework-related offence!

How loud can a firework be?

120 decibels. Since 2004, the legal noise levels of fireworks have remained unchanged. This dispels the belief that fireworks have got louder in recent years.

The relevant Section's title is "Prohibition of supply of excessively loud category 3 fireworks" and says:

No person shall supply, or offer or agree to supply, any category 3 firework which, when used, produces a maximum A-weighted impulse sound pressure level exceeding 120 decibels when measured in accordance with paragraph (2) below.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1) above, the sound pressure level is to be measured—

(a)at a horizontal distance of fifteen metres from the testing point at a height of one metre above the ground; and

(b)using a sound measuring device which conforms to type 1 of BS EN 61672 with a free-field microphone.

What are the different Categories of fireworks and why are they important?

Retail fireworks are often referred to by their Category. These can be F1, F2 and F3. The law defines each Category as:

• Category F1 fireworks are fireworks which present a very low hazard and negligible noise level and which are intended for use in confined areas, including fireworks which are intended for use inside domestic buildings.
• Category F2 fireworks are fireworks which present a low hazard and low noise level, and which are intended for outdoor use in confined areas.
• Category F3 fireworks are fireworks which present a medium hazard, which are intended for outdoor use in large open areas and whose noise level is not harmful to human health.
• Category F4 fireworks are fireworks which present a high hazard, which are intended for use only by Persons With Specialist Knowledge and whose noise level is not harmful to human health.

Theatrical pyrotechnic articles are defined as:

• Category T1 theatrical pyrotechnic articles are theatrical pyrotechnic articles which present a low hazard.
• Category T2 theatrical pyrotechnic articles are theatrical pyrotechnic articles which are intended for use only by persons with specialist knowledge.

The categories are important because they determine safety distances and establish the minimum age for purchase.

What are the different Hazard Divisions of fireworks?

A great place to start the answer to this question is ‘Why do we classify fireworks? Although we are transitioning UK law away from EU law, the current UK law is derived from the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road. It’s a bit of a mouthful and generally shortened to ADR. ADR became The Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations 2009 (CDG) when the UK adopted it.

The CDG Regulations lay down the international rules for transporting dangerous goods by rail, sea, and air, allowing for a common worldwide approach. Every dangerous good has a classification. ADR has a more detailed description, but it’s simplest to think of explosives in general, and these are Class 1.

For each firework to be allowed on the highway, it must have a hazard division, a subdivision of its Class. A default scheme describes different fireworks and their construction and then assigns them a Hazard Classification.

The default scheme lists product types such as Rocket, Synonyms for the type such as sky rocket or bottle rocket, definition - in this case, “Tube containing a pyrotechnic substance and/or pyrotechnic units, equipped with stick(s) or other means for stabilisation of flight, and designed to be propelled into the air” and then details a specification such as “> 20 g pyrotechnic substance and flash composition ≤ 25%” and this is assigned the classification 1.3G.

ADR defines the most common classifications for fireworks as:

Division 1.3 Substances and articles which have a fire hazard and either a minor blast hazard

or a minor projection hazard or both, but not a mass explosion hazard:

(a) combustion of which gives rise to considerable radiant heat; or

(b) which burn one after another, producing minor blast or projection effects

or both.

For example, this would apply to a single ignition barrage.

Division 1.4 Substances and articles which present only a slight risk of explosion in the event of ignition or initiation during carriage. The effects are largely confined to the package and no projection of fragments of appreciable size or range is to be expected. An external fire shall not cause virtually instantaneous explosion of almost the entire contents of the package.

Fountains are most likely to be 1.4, for example.

But what about the letters? You might see 1.3G or 1.4S on a box, for instance.

The letter indicates the Packing Group.

The two most common for fireworks are:

• G - Pyrotechnic substance, or article containing a pyrotechnic substance, or article containing both an explosive substance and an illuminating, incendiary, tear- or smoke-producing substance (other than a water-activated article or one which contains white phosphorus, phosphides, a pyrophoric substance, a flammable liquid or gel or hypergolic liquids).
• S - Substance or article so packed or designed that any hazardous effects arising from accidental functioning are confined within the package unless the package has been degraded by fire, in which case all blast or projection effects are limited to the extent that they do not significantly hinder or prevent fire-fighting or other emergency response efforts in the immediate vicinity of the package.

What are the UN numbers for fireworks?

The United Nations devised a list called DANGEROUS GOODS LIST AND LIMITED QUANTITIES EXCEPTIONS. This list assigns a four-digit code to identify different dangerous goods.

The three most common for fireworks are:

UN0335 for 1.3G

UN0336 for 1.4G

UN0337 for 1.4S

The proper shipping name is also stated on shipping cartons and documents. In our case, it’s simply FIREWORKS. By using an internationally agreed-upon set of numbers and names, all those involved in the supply chain know what is in a consignment.

The carton must also show the UN number and proper shipping name, as well as that it’s been tested, and all of that is explained here.