PARENTS have been warned that their children may be set on fire by accident if they are wearing unsafe Halloween costumes.

Dishing out advice for a ‘worry-free’ October 31 – Citizens Advice responded to the question about children being hurt by costumes which aren't fire safe.

It said: “I’m looking online for Halloween costumes for my kids. But I’m slightly worried as I’ve read stories about some costumes not being fire-safe and some children being hurt because of this. I want the kids to be able to enjoy their trick-or-treating worry-free, so what should I look for when buying their costumes?”

The advice helpline said: "Unfortunately you're right. There have been a number of incidents where children's Halloween costumes were set alight by accident."

Its top tips were to buy from a trusted shop rather than second-hand, to look at the customer reviews and and to check the costume is safe by looking for the 'CE' mark.

A 'CE' mark means that the product complies with European health and safety requirements and the product has been tested for flammability.

However, some 'CE' marks are fake.

To spot this the charity say to look at the letter E, it says that if its correct then the giveaway will be the middle part of the letter E which will be shorter than other parts. It also recommends chatting to children about staying away from fires.