Michael and Claire Johnsn with children Tom, Paige and Jade Picture Ref: 77392-24AN ELDENE man fears a child could die if a bedroom lamp is not recalled.

Michael Johnson returned a pink fluffy lamp to Argos after it caught fire in his daughters' room.

But he was outraged when he was told that although the product was withdrawn from shops it was not being recalled from customers who already own the lamp.

"It could have killed our family," said Mr Armstrong, 48, who lives on Collingsmead, Eldene, with wife Claire, 37, daughters Jade, 11, and Paige, eight, and four-year-old son Thomas. "Our two daughters were in the room. It was a good job they were still awake, because kids go to sleep with the light on. They noticed the room fill up with smoke.

"It is frightening, especially as they are designed for kids' bedrooms."

Mr Armstrong was so concerned about fire because a mobile home he lived in with his wife before his children were born burnt down while the couple were out at work.

"We have seen what fire can do," he said.

Mrs Armstrong bought the lamp called a 'pink fluffy feather light' for her daughters' room after they spotted it in the Argos catalogue.

After it caught fire the couple returned it, then received a letter saying a similar thing had happened with a number of the lamps and they were being withdrawn from shops.

But when Mr Armstrong rang the company he was told they would not be recalled from customers. "The thing that irritates me is they have known about it but they are not recalling them," he said.

"They are out there like timebombs waiting to go off. It is very irresponsible. If something happened to another child and I had sat here and done nothing I couldn't live with myself."

Trading standards officers in Swindon say if the product caught fire it should be recalled.

Robert Taylour, public protection group leader at Swindon Council, said: "That something caught fire is of extreme concern.

"If there is evidence that a product has caught fire in the home my view is that that tips the balance and there should be a product recall."

Argos said the light was withdrawn from shops in February and has since been modified and put back on sale.

But the company did not think it was necessary to recall the item as it stood up to extensive testing.

"We do take incidents of this nature seriously and thank you for bringing this to our attention," Argos said in a statement.

"The product does conform to all relevant UK and EU legislation and extensive external testing of the product confirmed there was no risk of the lamp causing a fire.

"In spite of the assurance from the testing house regarding the safety of the lamp, we decided to withdraw the item from sale in February as we take our customers' concerns seriously.

"The product has been modified since then and was reintroduced in March and remains a popular line." Anyone with concerns over the safety of a product can call Consumer Direct South West on 08454 040506 or go to the Safer Swindon Shop on Havelock Street.

Isabel Field