Baby wipes and all-purpose cleaners
Baby wipes are the most common cause of finish failure on pigmented leather. They contain surfactants and often alcohol, and used weekly they gradually dissolve the protective topcoat. The leather looks clean each time, so the routine continues, and eighteen months later the colour begins lifting at the arms and headrest where the coating has thinned to nothing. Once the topcoat is gone the only remedy is refinishing, which costs many times what correct cleaning would have.