Research Reveals Consumers’ Product Safety Ignorance

New research from product testing expert TÜV Product Service suggests that UK consumers are putting their safety at risk as they do not understand the meaning of marks stamped on the products they buy.

Three-quarters (73 per cent) of survey respondents said that they believed a CE marking on an electrical product meant that it was safe. What they don't realise is that manufacturers can use a CE marking on their products without any authorities checking that the proper safety tests have been done.

When it was explained that CE marking does not prove that a product is safe, the respondents said they were horrified and worried, or felt misled (79 per cent), with more than one-third (35 per cent) calling for the CE marking system to be monitored by an independent organisation.

Every year customs officials stop hundreds-of-thousands of faulty products being imported into the UK. This is because CE marking is simply a manufacturer's self-declaration that the product complies with European legislation. Less scrupulous manufacturers don't bother to test products and stamp on a fake CE marking, while others misunderstand the complex rules and pass products that should fail tests.

Children at risk

However, many more unsafe products are being missed by UK authorities. These make it onto our shop shelves each year, which the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents estimates causes 0.75million accidental injuries each year.

Most worrying is that 78 per cent of the respondents with children at home thought that 'CE' meant 'safety'. They could be buying cheap toys which they think are safe, but that in fact bear a CE marking which means nothing.

The use of fake CE markings has become so widespread that the UK safety testing industry often refers to it as 'China Export', inferring that the mark shows that a product has been exported from China, rather than proving it is safe to use.

Jean-Louis Evans, Managing Director of TÜV Product Service, said: "This research proves that there is a widespread assumption that CE marking stamped on a product by the manufacturer is proof of its safety. My advice to consumers would be not to panic as most of what we use is safe and does genuinely comply with CE marking safety standards. However, if you are really concerned about the safety of something, contact the customer service department of the retailer from which you purchased the item. We don't want to cause mass panic, but we do want to raise consumers' awareness of what identifies a product as safe to use," concluded Evans.