The use of 3-arylacrylic esters I ##STR1## where Ar is an aryl radical which can additionally carry substituents, R.sup.1 is the residue of an n-hydric aliphatic polyol having up to 20 carbon atoms, where the carbon chain can be interrupted by up to 9 non-adjacent oxygen atoms, or of an n-hydric cyclo-aliphatic polyol having 5 to 20 carbon atoms in which ring carbon atoms can also be replaced by non-adjacent oxygen atoms, R.sup.2 and R.sup.3 are hydrogen or C.sub.1 --C.sub.4 -alkyl, and n is a number from l to 10, as stabilizers, in particular against the action of light, for non-living organic material.