UK Offence Report

The Energy Information (Household Refrigerators and Freezers) Regulations 2004

UK Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 1468 — creates 1 criminal offence.

1offences created
0recorded in force
0revoked
Made
27 May 2004
In force from
1 July 2004
Extent
Not stated
Subject
Food, consumer protection, trading standards, product safety and age-restricted sales
Made under
European Communities Act 1972

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations) — published with the instrument by the department that made it. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

These Regulations implement Council Directive 92/75/EEC (on the indication by labelling and standard product information of the consumption of energy and other resources by household appliances) and Commission Directive 94/2/EC as amended by Commission Directive 2003/66/EC (implementing Council Directive 92/75/EEC with regard to energy labelling of household electric refrigerators, freezers and their combinations). The texts of Council Directive 92/75/EEC and Commission Directive 94/2/EC (as amended by Commission Directive 2003/66/EC) have been extended to the European Economic Area (“EEA”) by amendments to points 4 and 4a of Chapter IV of Annex II to the Agreement. The EEA states that are not member States are Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland. Household electric refrigerators, freezers and their combinations to which these Regulations apply are those specified in regulation 3, subject to the exclusions specified in regulation 4. In particular, they do not apply to appliances placed on the Community market before 1st July 2004. Suppliers, as defined in regulation 2, must supply labels (which comply with Schedules 1 and 4) free of charge to dealers (regulation 7(3)) and supply information sheets (which comply with Schedules 2, 4 and 5) giving information about the energy consumption of those appliances (regulations 7 and 8). They are responsible for the accuracy of the information (regulation 9) and are required to establish, before the appliance is placed on the Community market, technical documentation to enable the accuracy of the information to be assessed and to retain that information for a period of 5 years after the last appliance of a particular model is manufactured (regulation 5). Suppliers are deemed to consent to the publication of the information given on a label or in an information sheet (regulation 10). Dealers, as defined in regulation 2, must attach labels to displayed appliances displayed to end-users (regulation 11). Where a person offers an appliance for sale by way of a communication (as defined in regulation 2(2)), that person is required by regulation 12 (information in respect of mail order and other distance selling) to provide certain information to the potential purchaser a set out in Schedule 3. Regulation 13 prohibits the display of misleading information about the energy consumption of an appliance, save where labels that comply with the 1994 Regulations are permitted to be displayed. Regulation 14 provides a presumption of compliance in respect of labels and information sheets. Regulation 15 and Schedule 6 contain provisions on offences, penalties and other matters of enforcement. Prosecutions in Scotland cannot be brought by the enforcement authority (regulation 15(2)) but are brought by the Procurator Fiscal. Regulation 16 contains transitional provisions allowing labels, information sheets and communications that comply with the 1994 Regulations to be displayed or used in relation to appliances placed on the Community market on or before 30th December 2004. Regulation 17(1) revokes the 1994 Regulations and the Energy Information and Energy Efficiency (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2001 to the extent that they amend the 1994 Regulations on the 31st December 2004, subject to paragraph (2). Regulation 17(2) preserves the provision of the 1994 Regulations in two situations: for appliances placed on the Community market before 1st July 2004; or where an appliance is placed on the Community market after 30th June 2004 but before 31st December 2004 and measurements were made using EN 153:1990 (BS EN 153:1990). A full Regulatory Impact Assessment of the effect that these Regulations will have on the costs of business has been prepared and placed in the library of each House of Parliament, together with Transposition Notes setting out how the main elements of Council Directive 92/75/EEC and Commission Directive 94/2/EC (as amended) are transposed in these Regulations. Copies of these documents may be obtained from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs, Environment Business and Consumers Division, Zone 6/D10, Victoria Street, London SW1E 6DE. Copies of the British Standards publications referred to in these Regulations may be obtained from any of the sales outlets operated by the British Standards Institution or by post from the British Standards Institution, 389 Chiswick High Road, London W4 4AJ.

Offences created by this instrument

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