ISSUES AFFECTING THE SALE OF FIRE EXTINGUISHERS IN THE USA
1) What Makes an Illegal Fire Extinguisher?
For a person to lawfully market, distribute, or sell a fire extinguisher in California, the extinguisher must:
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Comply with the requirements in the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 10
Have been examined by and bear the label of Underwriters’ Laboratories Inc. or another testing
laboratory approved by the state fire marshal as qualified to test fire extinguishers. (Cal. Health &
Safety Code, sections 13160-13161).
Other states contain similar prohibitions on the sale of non-compliant fire extinguishers.
2) What is NFPA 10?
The National Fire Protection Association’s “NFPA 10,” “Standard for Portable Fire Extinguishers” specifies
minimum requirements that must be met for a fire extinguisher to be considered safe. The requirements in
NFPA 10 acquire the force of law in states by virtue of adoption or reference in states statutes, regulations,
or through references in building and fire codes that are the law in those states.
Regarding dry chemical portable fire extinguishers, NFPA 10 requires the following:
Section 1.3.1 states, “Portable fire extinguishers used to comply with this standard shall be listed
and labeled and shall meet or exceed all requirements of one of the fire test standards and one of
the performance standards shown below:”
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Fire Test Standard—ANSI/UL 711, Standard for Rating and Fire Testing of Extinguishers,
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Fire Performance Standard—ANSI/UL 299, Standard for Dry Chemical Fire Extinguishers.
“Listed” in NFPA 10 means “equipment, materials, or services included in a list published
by an organization that is acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction and concerned with
evaluation of products or services, that maintains periodic inspection of production of listed
equipment or materials or periodic evaluation of services, and whose listing states that
either the equipment, material, or service meets appropriate designated standards or has
been tested and found suitable for a specified purpose.”
“Labeled” in NFPA 10 means “equipment or materials to which has been attached a label,
symbol, or other identifying mark of an organization that is acceptable to the authority
having jurisdiction and concerned with product evaluation of products or services, that
maintains periodic inspection of production of labeled equipment or materials, and by
whose labeling the manufacturer indicates compliance with appropriate standards or
performance in a specified manner.”
Section 1.3.2 of NFPA 10 states, “The identification of the listing and labeling organization, the fire
test, and the performance standard that the fire extinguisher meets or exceeds shall be clearly
marked on each extinguisher.”
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Use of the term “shall” in NPFA 10 denotes a mandatory requirement.
This document is solely for information purposes. It is under development and subject to future additions,
clarifications and changes. The information in this document has been gathered from a variety of sources
including state fire marshals and is believed to be accurate at the time of publication. However, H3R does not
accept responsibility to anyone for its accuracy or completeness, or for any use of or reliance on the
information contained herein. Always refer to the authority having jurisdiction and to the latest state and local
laws, codes and other regulations applicable to portable fire extinguishers.
3) Retailer’s Liability Exposure
Every product seller faces product liability exposure for the sale of an unreasonably dangerous product.
This legal theory is called strict tort liability and responsibility is placed on a product seller even though the
seller is not negligent. The responsibility is based upon the product’s condition at the time the retailer
makes the sale—i.e, the extinguisher’s design, suitability for its intended use, adequacy of testing,
instructions, warnings, presence of any production defects, express and implied warranties, etc
Although a retailer may be drawn into product litigation, in many cases the retailer is entitled to recover its
losses (excluding its attorneys’ fees) from the person in the commercial chain who created the defect. This
is most often the manufacturer who exercises control over the extinguisher’s design, production, testing and
marketing. The question to ask is, “Will the manufacturer be financially able to reimburse the retailer for
these costs?”
An extinguisher’s price is not the only factor for a retailer to consider. The retailer has a genuine financial
interest in whether the extinguisher is legal to sell, as well as the extinguisher manufacturer’s quality
assurance programs, design and production competence, level of its own insurance coverage, financial
strength, business integrity and the performance and reliability of its units. The quality of the manufacturer
and its extinguisher do matter. Lack of quality will translate into costs, perhaps very substantial costs, for
the retailer.
An overseas manufacturer presents additional concerns discussed in the next section. Many overseas
manufacturers are beyond the reach of the U.S. courts, so the retailer becomes the main target defendant
in the event of a loss. The retailer is forced to defend an extinguisher it did not design, manufacture, test,
prepare warnings and instructions for, all without the ready assistance of the overseas manufacturer. And
like the plaintiff the retailer cannot bring the overseas manufacturer into the case, to shoulder the defense
burden and costs, due to the jurisdictional limits.
4) Whose Responsibility is a Product Recall?
A fire extinguisher is viewed by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) as a consumer
product, and thus fire extinguishers are subject to the product recall requirements in the Consumer Product
Protection Act, 15 USC 2051 et seq. The Act imposes recall responsibility on the manufacturer and any
seller of a consumer product with a defect that creates a substantial product hazard. (15 USC 2064). If the
manufacturer of an extinguisher is insolvent, bankrupt, out of business, under-insured, or beyond U.S.
jurisdiction, it is the retailer who may be called on by the CPSC to conduct the recall, compensate the
customers, replace the product and pay the associated costs.
5) The Value of the UL® Mark on an Extinguisher
The reputation of Underwriters’ Laboratories, Inc. for testing for the public safety is renown (see
www.ul.com). As a major retailer, it is no doubt known to you and valued by your internal risk managers
who assess the products you offer for sale. On a dry chemical extinguisher, the UL® Mark is a positive
representation to the consumer that the extinguisher meets or exceeds the requirements of the NFPA 10,
ANSI/UL 711 and ANSI/UL 299 safety standards discussed above. For the retailer, it is a valuable
independent third-party validation of an extinguisher’s compliance with these requirements—requirements
that by law must be met in order for the retailer to lawfully sell the extinguisher in most states.
UL does more than allow a manufacturer to display the UL® Mark on a fire extinguisher. As an integral part
of this authorization is a continuous process of scrutiny by UL of the manufacturer’s manufacturing and
quality assurance processes by regular on site in-plant inspections of the manufacturing facilities, QC
controls and recordkeeping. All of this adds up to an increased level of comfort to you, the retailer, that the
fire extinguisher you are selling to the public will perform, and will protect life and property.
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