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People reclining on their Ikea leather furniture my actually be sitting on plastic, it has emerged.

The Swedish furniture giant has admitted some couches and chairs featured in the leather section of the website are actually made from synthetic materials.

Ikea is now offering a refund to any customers who feel they have been misled.

The gaff was first spotted by a consumer campaign group in Australia.

It later emerged the same inconsistency was on the UK site, reports the Daily Mail .

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Ikea says the problem has now been resolved, but some searches still throw up fake leather furniture.

The company's £140 Ekero chair was last week still in the ‘leather armchair’ section.

However small print reveals the fabric is 75 per cent polyester, cotton and polyurethane.

In the leather sofas section is the Kivik, at £1,198, a two-seater with a chaise longue.

(Image: Ikea)

But only the ‘contact areas’ – tops of the cushions, back rest and arms – are actually leather.

According to the website "the outer surfaces are covered in a durable coated fabric with the same look and feel as leather".

This is also true of the £999 Timfors two-seater and the £350 Skogaby.

Using plastic instead of leather allows Ikea to keep prices lower.

However the synthetic replacement is less hard-wearing and can tarnish in sunlight.

Ikea says the information was improved and updated on the UK website on December 15.

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But some product descriptions remain potentially misleading.

Donna Moore, Ikea customer relations manager, said: "We believe in being open and transparent about the composition of our products.

"Customers can find detailed information about the materials of all of our products within the product description on every individual product page of our website, as well as our in-store communication.

"If any customers are unhappy with their purchases, they are of course welcome to return their products for a full refund."