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JA2010 - Laser Pointers

Non-compliant and dangerous laser pointers (and other laser products) can cause safety problems such as serious and permanent eye damages, temporary blinding and skin burns during skin care treatments. Several cases have been reported where high-power laser pointers have been used to (temporarily) blind airline pilots, engine drivers and car drivers, thus putting many more people at risk.

The primary objective of the activity was to ensure that laser products available on the EU market for consumers are safe, correctly classified and carry the appropriate warnings and instructions.

The activity had a test programme that included testing and assessment of all the relevant clauses in the standard EN IEC 60825-1 (2007).

The impact the activity had can be seen in the fact that 80% of the RAPEX notifications of laser pointers made during 2012 were as a result of the testing carried out by the Joint Action combined with the application of the Risk Assessment tool on the identified samples.

JA2009 - Lighters 2

Reports from EU Member States indicate that novelty lighters constitute a decreasing share of their markets, however the results of the first PROSAFE Joint Action on lighters did in fact show that a large share of the lighter models on the European market still do not comply with the legal requirements. This observation has also been emphasised by European stakeholders that repeatedly stressed the need for a long-term engagement of commitment from the Member States to clean up the market.

Therefore, PROSAFE and Market surveillance authorities from 13 EU Member State countries decided to carry out a second Joint Action on lighters which follows-up on the previous PROSAFE Joint Action undertaken by 15 member states in the years 2007-2009. For further information, please click here.

The participating authorities have developed a guideline to support them decide on appropriate measures against non-compliant lighters taking the principle of proportionality into account. The Guideline provides one input to this process that will have to be combined with other input such as information from the economic operator, the market situation, the product’s track record, the business’ track record, exposure, etc. etc. The guideline does not bind Member States that will always have to evaluate the specific circumstances in each specific case.

The Member States in the Joint Action have also developed a Guideline to importers of lighters from third countries. The guideline describes legislation, standards, pitfalls and other useful information for lighter importers.

The Final Implementation Report of this Joint Action is available and provides information about the activities undertaken, the participants involved, the results obtained and a financial statement comparing all expenditures against the budget. This project has been executed under the 2009 call for tender and the reporting requirements may differ from actions granted under calls outlined in other years.

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JA2010 - Food Imitation Products

The presence of food imitation child-appealing products may give rise to serious risks for children that confuse them with food. Two main risks are associated with such products, small parts and ingestion of substances such as shampoos that are mistaken for food products.

The primary objective of the action was to remove from the EU market dangerous food imitation products in respect of which a high or serious risk has been demonstrated by a specific risk assessment.

A secondary objective was to raise the awareness within the Member States for the need for increased harmonisation in the evaluation of food imitation products.

The following countries were involved in the project: Austria, Cyprus, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic. In addition Bosnia and Herzegovina and Turkey participated as observers outside the financial scheme.

An important part of the joint action was the testing of a number of food imitation products. Taking into consideration Council Directive 87/357/EEC of 25 June 1987 concerning products which, appearing to be other than they are, endanger the health or safety of consumers, the purpose of the testing was to clarify whether chemicals were part of the investigated products and if such products are unsafe enough and contain substances that may cause poisoning or chemical pneumonia if ingested, and may need that the authorities will take prior action against them.

The Action has contributed to a better understanding of the risks presented by these products and this is seen in the decline in RAPEX notifications made following the implementation of the Action. In some instances better enforcement does not result in more notifications but rather in notifications being made on a more objective basis.

JA2012 - Ladders 2

The primary goals of the JA2012 on Ladders were to: collect data on the EU market for telescopic, multi-hinged and other unusual ladder types; assist the development of improved safety standards as none currently exist for telescopic type ladders (note there is a draft EN standard which is expected to be published during 2015, however there is a view that this new standard may not be sufficient); build knowledge on the relevant ladder standard tests already in place; and to find out the degree to which ladder samples on the market can be considered safe. The Member States (MS) who were involved in this specific Activity were the Czech Republic, France, Iceland, the Netherlands and Slovenia.

The approach to the Activity was typical in that the participating Market Surveillance Authorities undertook to: study the participating members’ national markets for the appropriate types of ladders to produce a market survey; use this data to make decisions on sampling; visit manufacturers/importers/wholesalers to inspect and collect products; test all the ladder samples at an appropriately skilled laboratory; carry out harmonised risk assessments for each ladder tested; undertake follow-up actions on non-compliant products; and report on actions taken.

PROSAFE Ladders ReportIn total, detailed market and product information was gathered on 66 telescopic, multi-hinged and other unusual ladder types by the MS, which resulted in 18 ladders being selected. Nine telescopic ladders and nine multi-hinged ladders were sent for testing to selected tests from the current standards for ladders, EN131-2, -3, -4, pr-6, plus some additional tests designed by the Activity. 100% of the ladders failed to meet the entire test programme based on EN131, which is a serious cause for concern as that family of standards is considered by many to have a number of significant weaknesses. 

Final Technical Report
Please click on the picture to download a copy of the final technical report. The report gives an overview of the activities done throughout this particular project, highlighting not only the test results but also the recommendations and conclusions which can be found at the end of this report.