The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012

UK Statutory Instrument 2012 No. 3032 — creates 10 criminal offences.

10offences created

0recorded in force

0revoked

Made: 4 December 2012
In force from: 2 January 2013
Extent: Not stated
Subject: Health and safety, environment, waste and fisheries
Made under: European Communities Act 1972, Schedule 2 to, the 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 Directive 2011/65/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2011 on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (recast) (OJ No L174, 01.07.2011, p88). The Directive imposes harmonised restrictions on the use of certain listed hazardous substances in 11 categories of electrical and electronic equipment. It also requires the use of EU declarations of conformity and CE marking, and provides for market surveillance. The Directive seeks to reduce the risks posed by hazardous substances to health and the environment. The Directive repeals and replaces Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (OJ No L37, 13.02.2003, p19) (as amended) which was implemented in the United Kingdom by the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/37) (as amended). These Regulations revoke and replace S.I. 2008/37 (regulation 7). Regulation 3 sets out the restrictions on the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment (‘EEE’). Regulation 5 and Schedule 1 set out the EEE to which these Regulations apply. Regulation 6 sets out a time-limited exclusion from the scope of these Regulations. Part 2 of the Regulations sets out the prohibitions and obligations that apply to economic operators. They are divided into prohibitions and obligations applying to manufacturers and their authorised representatives (regulations 10 to 22), importers (regulations 23 to 28), distributors (regulations 29 to 32), and all economic operators (regulations 33 and 34). The various categories of economic operator are defined in regulation 2. In certain circumstances importers and distributors are required to comply with the duties of manufacturers in place of, or in addition to, the duties that apply to importers and distributors (regulations 28 and 32). Part 3 deals with the enforcement of these Regulations. Regulation 35 appoints the Secretary of State as the market surveillance authority, both for the purposes of these Regulations and for the purposes of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 of the European Parliament of the Council of 9 July 2008 setting out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 (OJ No L218, 13.08.2008 p30). The powers under Regulation No 765/2008 are available to supplement the enforcement provisions in these Regulations. Part 4 of the Regulations requires the Secretary of State to review the operation and effect of these Regulations and publish a report within five years after they come into force and within every five years after that. Following a review it will fall to the Secretary of State to consider whether the Regulations should remain as they are, or be revoked or be amended. A further instrument would be needed to revoke the Regulations or to amend them. Schedule 1 sets out what EEE are inside and outside the scope of these Regulations. Schedule 2 contains the powers that the market surveillance authority can exercise, such as test purchases, powers of entry and warrants. Schedule 3 sets out the actions the market surveillance authority can take, and includes provision for compliance, enforcement and recall notices. A transposition note and a full impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of business and the voluntary sector are available from the BIS website (www.bis.gov.uk). They are also annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum published alongside the instrument on www.legislation.gov.uk.

Offences created by this instrument

It is an offence for any person to contravene or fail to comply with any of the requirements of— a an enforcement… paragraph 9(1) of SCHEDULE 3 · Status not determined · Strict liability
It is an offence for a manufacturer to contravene or fail to comply with any of the requirements of— a regulation 10… regulation 37(1) · Status not determined · Mixed — some elements strict, some not
It is an offence for an importer to contravene or fail to comply with any of the requirements of— a regulation 23… regulation 37(2) · Status not determined · Mixed — some elements strict, some not
It is an offence for a distributor to contravene or fail to comply with any of the requirements of— a regulation 29… regulation 37(3) · Status not determined · Mixed — some elements strict, some not
It is an offence for an economic operator to contravene or fail to comply with regulation 33(2) (identification of… regulation 37(4) · Status not determined · Strict liability
It is an offence for any person to contravene or fail to comply with any of the requirements of regulation 34… regulation 37(5) · Status not determined · Strict liability
Obstruction, etc regulation 38 · Status not determined · Requires proof of a state of mind
Remediation orders regulation 40(1) · Status not determined · Strict liability
Recovery of expenses of enforcement regulation 41(1) · Status not determined · Strict liability
Liability of persons other than the principal offender regulation 44(2) · Status not determined · Strict liability

What Parliament said about it

Contributions, debates and written statements mentioning this instrument by name. Parliamentary material is reused under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Draft Persistent Organic Pollutants (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2022 Commons · General Committees · 21 November 2022 · Stella Creasy
The Minister does not quite recognise the seriousness of the questions that I ask if she thinks that it is scaremongering to ask them. She said that she is going through the Bill, so can she confirm that the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012 and Regulation (EU) 2018/858 should both be on the dashboard? One is and one is not, but both are affected by this SI. Ministers should not confuse being scared of answering these questions with being asked to be accountable for the detail of the consequences of their actions.
Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill (Third sitting) Commons · Public Bill Committees · 22 November 2022 · Stella Creasy
I thank my hon. Friend for giving way. Given that we are debating whether Ministers are capable of scrutiny, not to take any questions rather proves the point. Does my hon. Friend agree with me that he has already set out a number of instances of regulations that are not on the dashboard? I wish to add the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012. Is there a number for the regulations that are not currently on the dashboard that people can feel comfortable with? Is there a margin of error that the shadow Minister can set…
Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Exemptions) (Fees) Regulations 2022 Lords · Grand Committee · 6 December 2022 · The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Benyon) (Con)
My Lords, the regulations were laid before the House on 18 October. The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012, also known as the ROHS regulations, restrict the use of 10 substances that were commonly used in the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment but which have now been proven to cause harm to the environment and/or human health. This is particularly the case when products become waste, with the potential for these harmful substances to be released into the environment or the workplace of those working…
Draft Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Exemptions) (Fees) Regulations 2022 Commons · General Committees · 12 December 2022 · The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Rebecca Pow)
I beg to move, That the Committee has considered the draft Restriction of Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (Exemptions) (Fees) Regulations 2022. It is, as ever, a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Hosie. We will endeavour to get on with this statutory instrument at full speed. The Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2012, also known as the RoHS regulations, restrict the use of 10 substances that were commonly used in the manufacture of electrical and electronic equipment, but which…
Product Safety and Metrology: (Amendment) Regulations 2024 Commons · Written Statements · 24 January 2024 · The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Kevin Hollinrake)
Today, I am updating Parliament on developments to the Government’s approach to the UK Conformity Assessment (UKCA) product marking and plans to continue recognition of ‘conformité européenne’ (CE) beyond 31 December 2024. The Government intend to lay legislation in spring to provide businesses with the flexibility to place goods that fall under 21 product regulations and meet current EU requirements on the market in Great Britain. Later in the year, the Government also intend to introduce greater labelling flexibility, including the option for manufacturers to use digital labelling. This…

How Parliament handled it

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