Fireworks law in the United Kingdom
overview of the fireworks law in the United Kingdom
Fireworks in England, Scotland and Wales are governed primarily by the Fireworks Regulations 2004 (under powers delegated from the Fireworks Act 2003), the Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015, and British Standards BS 7114 until 4/7/17 and BS-EN 15947-2015. In Northern Ireland, fireworks are governed by The Pyrotechnic Articles (Safety) Regulations 2015, and Explosives (Fireworks) Regulations (NI) 2002.
Categories
BS 7114 defines four 'categories' for fireworks.
Fireworks available to the public
The sale of Category 1 fireworks are restricted to persons aged 16 and older, while the minimum age set for Category 2 and 3 fireworks is 18.
Otherwise, all fireworks, since 1997, must comply with BS7114, and be marked accordingly and fall into one of the following three categories:
Category 1 ("indoor") fireworks are for use in extremely restricted areas.
Category 2 ("garden") fireworks must be safely viewable from 5 metres (16 ft) away, and must scatter no debris beyond a 3-metre (9.8 ft) range.
Category 3 ("display") fireworks must be safely viewable from 25 metres (82 ft) away, and must scatter no debris beyond a 20-metre (66 ft) range.
Under BS14035, there are also now Category 2 fireworks that require a longer distance of 8 metres (26 ft), providing potentially better effects than 5-metre (16 ft) fireworks but without the fallout of Category 3 fireworks.
Fireworks that are louder than 120 dB at 15 metres (49 ft) cannot be sold to the public.
It is not illegal for a firework to be set off at less than the minimum safely viewable distance; however, in the event of any injury to a spectator, the firer might be liable if the distance was too short.
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