SCS sofa - Is bi-cast leather, real leather?

It might be worth giving Consumer Direct a ring in the morning as they will be able to look it up in their knowledgebase. If you believe Wikipedia then it can't be sold as leather - Bicast leather - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bi-Cast cannot be considered leather. There is a small amount in the covering, but the percentage of leather Vs plastic means that there is very little actual leather and more plastic which means that is cannot be honestly called leather.

Bi-cast leather is made up of particles of leather, usually scraps of leather found on the floor at the tannery, these leather fibre,s are then put into mixer which shreds the scraps, a poly bond is then added to give the high sheen look, it is not genuine leather and should not be sold as, genuine leather has a grain to it, if you look closely at Bicast there is no grain, after time the poly bond will peel away

If you want really genuine leather furniture then these leather dining chairs are 100% genuine leather.

You should defiantly contact Consumer Direct and see what your rights are. If Wiki is correct then you should be entitled to some kind of compensation, surely. Keep us posted on your progress.

Bicast leather is a split leather with a polyurethane coating bonded to the surface. The thickness of the surface coating will determine whether this can be sold as leather or not.

'..If the leather has a surface coating, the mean thickness of this surface layer, however applied, has to be 0.15mm or less, and does not exceed 30% of the overall thickness'.
BS: 2780

Bicast leather should be sold as 'Bicast Leather' or 'Laminated Leather' but cannot be sold as 'leather'.

Hope this helps
Judyb
Leather care consultant