Lawyers for about 1,400 people who say they have been burned by fungicide in some leather sofas have said trading standards authorities are failing them.
The lawyers say tens of thousands of people might be affected and they say the authorities should make retailers take the sofas back.
The sofas, imported from China, are said to cause blisters and rashes.
Lancashire Trading Standards said it had received no "objective information" about what was causing the problem.
Christian Shotton, of solicitors Russell, Jones and Walker, said: "Trading standards haven't taken an approach and assisted or forced these retailers - as they can do - to remove the sofas from these people's houses and stop people from getting hurt."
But Jim Potts, of Lancashire Trading Standards, said: "When we pressed them [scientists] for some factual evidence of what they feel is causing this, none would provide us with any objective information."
Product recall
Doctors say they have treated hundreds of patients with "sofa rash" and some are warning that warm weather is likely to increase the problem in the coming months.
Dr Sandra Winhoven, a consultant dermatologist, said: "The substance that's causing the sofa dermatitis outbreak is a fungicide, and this fungicide has a very low vapour point.
"So when it gets warm, more of it gets released."
"We're concerned that the product recalls which have been undertaken do not identify all the furniture which may have been affected"Argos, which has sold about 30,000 of the sofas, carried out an investigation and identified what it believes is the anti-mould chemical - a substance known as DMF.
The company has removed the sofas from sale and given refunds to anyone who bought them.
Retailers Land of Leather and Walmsley's say they have refunded people who have complained, but have not ordered a full product recall.
Tracey Hayes developed a rash across her legs, bottom and back last year. She told BBC Breakfast she spent four weeks in hospital as a result.
"Initially, I thought it was from an insect bite. I didn't connect it to the sofa until I read a newspaper article about it," Ms Hayes said.
Another solicitor, Julia Appleton, told the BBC: "One of the concerns is that we don't know how far this problem has spread.
"We're concerned that the product recalls which have been undertaken do not identify all the furniture which may have been affected.
"We don't know enough yet about the manufacturing process, the storage of the furniture and the chemical DMF to know whether or not this problem is very, very much more widespread."
Earlier reports suggested the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) was investigating whether DMF was illegal and should be banned.
But the HSE says it has not launched an investigation.
A spokesman told BBC News anyone concerned about their sofa should contact their local trading standards office or Consumer Direct on 08454 040506 or in Northern Ireland 0845 6006262.
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