CE (mark) marking & EC Rep for Toys: EU European Authorized Representative & CE Marking consulting services under Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec & new Directive 2009/48/ec

Do you export Toys to Europe? Let Wellkang Group help you!

Let Wellkang be your EU European Authorized/Authorised Representative !
Your EC Rep for Toys under Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec and,
as of 20 July 2011, new Directive 2009/48/ec !

Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec & 2009/48/ec
Responsibilities of a Manufacturer
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About CE Marking:

Toy Safety Directives (TSD) 88/378/eec & 2009/48/ec

What is a toy?

A toy means:

in (old) TSD 88/378/eec,
any product or material designed or clearly intended for use in play by children of less than 14 years of age;

in new TSD 2009/48/ec,
a product designed or intended, whether or not exclusively, for use in play by children under 14 years of age.

But, there is a list of products not regarded as toys for the purpose of this directive.

(old) Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec

The Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec came into force on 1st January 1990. Since then, all toys placed on the European market must bear the CE Marking.

The Directive TSD covers: scope and definitions, placing products on the market and putting them into service, free movement of CE-marked goods in member states, reference to harmonized standards, vigilance and incident reporting, conformity assessment procedures, safety, authorized representative, consequences of wrongly affixed CE Marking etc

The Directive TSD also sets out the mandatory "essential safety requirements" for toys relating to: the design, the construction or the composition, special hazards such as the physical and mechanical properties, flammability, chemical properties, electrical properties, hygiene and radioactivity, etc.

New Directive TSD 2009/48/ec

This new TSD Directive 2009/48/ec came into force on 20 July 2009, and will become a legal document in all Member States once it has been implemented into national legislation (by 20 January 2011).

The 2009 TSD Directive 2009/48/ec strengthens the rules as laid down in the 1988 TSD. As a result, this new legislation will require adaptations in the manufacturing chain, as well as new procedures along the supply chain.

The 2009 TSD was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 30 June 2009 and entered into force on 20 July 2009. The general provisions of the 2009 TSD will be applicable to toys placed on the market as of 20 July 2011, while the chemical provisions will be applicable to toys placed on the market as of 20 July 2013 (additional 2-year transition period for chemical properties). In practice, this means that the toys compliant with the 1988 TSD will be allowed to be placed on the market until 19 July 2011 or 19 July 2013 in the case of certain chemical provisions.

CE Marking

The CE Marking is the manufacturer's declaration that his toys meet the essential requirements of the European Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec, and that such toys are therefore entitled to free movement throughout the 28 European Union & EFTA member states. The CE Marking has often been described as the "products' trade passport to Europe".

Responsibilities of a Manufacturer

Toy Safety Regulations and Standard

Toy Safety Regulations are:
     - General Product Safety Regulations
     - Toys (Safety) Regulations
     - Pencil and Graphics Instruments (Safety) Regulations

Toy Safety Standards cover mainly:
     - Mechanical & Physical Hazards
     - Flammability
     - Toxicity-Migration of Certain Elements
     - Experimental Sets for Chemistry
     - Chemical Toys
     - Graphical Symbol for Age Warning
     - Electrical properties

Electrical and Battery Powered Toys, Chemical Toys, Acoustics and Toys

Electrical and Battery Operated Toys

Electrical and Battery Operated Toys covers the whole range of electrical toys from small button cells, operating lights and sound to large sit and ride on vehicles, powered by sealed lead acid cells.
Toys must not be powered by electricity exceeding certain Volts.
For toys operated by batteries, the problems occur when the wrong batteries are used, when old and new batteries are mixed or when batteries are wrongly inserted.
When the customers want to use rechargeable batteries. Certain advice may need to be given depends on how many batteries are required to power the product.
WEEE registration and compliance (after 13 August 2005)
RoHS compliance (after 1 July 2006)

Chemical Toys

These have to carry clear warnings and what are the age limitations.

Acoustics & Toys

Toys that produce noise will have limits on what are described as "peak emission sound pressure levels", i.e., the loudest noise that a toy can make. Warning is needed if the noise is over certain level.

Proper Labeling for Toys, Age Labeling & Age Warnings

By using proper labeling, Age Labeling and Age Warnings, you can prevent a customer from buying an unsuitable toy for a young child, thus you may well be preventing that child from injuring himself or herself, or you may also make sure that an inappropriate toy doesn't become an unsafe toy in the wrong hands.

CE-marked toys must meet special requirements for labeling including age labeling and warnings for children of various ages, and in particular, warnings for toys that are deemed to be unsuitable for children under 36 months. EU standards give also alternative symbol for such warnings in the place of text.

DoC- Declaration of Conformity

In many cases, the manufacturer can self-declare that their products meet the legal requirements contained in the TSD Directive by preparing a document called "Declaration of Conformity" plus a set of "Technical Files", which support their self-claim.

Technical documentation (also called Technical Files)

1. The technical documentation shall contain all relevant data or details of the means used by the manufacturer to ensure that toys comply with the requirements set out in Article 10 and Annex II of TSD. It shall, in particular, contain the documents listed in Annex IV of TSD.

2. The technical documentation shall be drawn up in one of the official languages of the Community, subject to the requirement set out in Article 20(5) of TSD.

3. Following a reasoned request from the market surveillance authority of a Member State, the manufacturer shall provide a translation of the relevant parts of the technical documentation into the language of that Member State.

When a market surveillance authority requests the technical documentation or a translation of parts thereof from a manufacturer, it may fix a deadline for receipt of such file or translation, which shall be 30 days, unless a shorter deadline is justified in the case of serious and immediate risk.

4. If the manufacturer does not comply with the requirements of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, the market surveillance authority may require it to have a test performed by a notified body at its own expense (!!!) within a specified period in order to verify compliance with the harmonised standards and essential safety requirements.

EC Rep: European Authorized Representative (Authorised Representative)

If a manufacturer is from outside the 28 EU+EFTA member states, the manufacturer needs to appoint a European Authorized Representative within the EU+EFTA member states to keep the "Declaration of Conformity" and "Technical documentation (also called Technical Files)" for inspections by any EU surveillance authorities.

The name and address of the European Authorized Representative must be printed on the labelling and package of toys along with the CE marking.

The Authorised representative shall perform at least the following tasks:

(a) keep the EC declaration of conformity and the technical documentation at the disposal of national surveillance authorities for a period of 10 years after the toy has been placed on the market;
(b) further to a reasoned request from a competent national authority, provide that authority with all the information and documentation necessary to demonstrate the conformity of a toy;
(c) cooperate with the competent national authorities, at their request, on any action taken to eliminate the risks posed by toys covered by the mandate.

Let Wellkang be your EU European Authorized/Authorised Representative !
Your EC Rep for Toys under Toy Safety Directive (TSD) 88/378/eec and,
as of 20 July 2011, new Directive 2009/48/ec !

List of products that, in particular, are not considered as toys within the meaning of this TSD directive.

Decorative objects for festivities and celebrations
Products for collectors, provided that the product or its packaging bears a visible and legible indication that it is intended for collectors of 14 years of age and above. Examples of this category are:
(a) detailed and faithful scale models;
(b) kits for the assembly of detailed scale models;
(c) folk dolls and decorative dolls and other similar articles;
(d) historical replicas of toys; and
(e) reproductions of real fire arms.
Sports equipment, including roller skates, inline skates, and skateboards intended for children with a body mass of more than 20 kg
Bicycles with a maximum saddle height of more than 435 mm, measured as the vertical distance from the ground to the top of the seat surface, with the seat in a horizontal position and with the seat pillar set to the minimum insertion mark
Scooters and other means of transport designed for sport or which are intended to be used for travel on public roads or public pathways
Electrically driven vehicles which are intended to be used for travel on public roads, public pathways, or the pavement thereof
Aquatic equipment intended to be used in deep water, and swimming learning devices for children, such as swim seats and swimming aids
Puzzles with more than 500 pieces
Guns and pistols using compressed gas, with the exception of water guns and water pistols, and bows for archery over 120 cm long
Fireworks, including percussion caps which are not specifically designed for toys
Products and games using sharp-pointed missiles, such as sets of darts with metallic points
Functional educational products, such as electric ovens, irons or other functional products operated at a nominal voltage exceeding 24 volts which are sold exclusively for teaching purposes under adult supervision
Products intended for use for educational purposes in schools and other pedagogical contexts under the surveillance of an adult instructor, such as science equipment
Electronic equipment, such as personal computers and game consoles, used to access interactive software and their associated peripherals, unless the electronic equipment or the associated peripherals are specifically designed for and targeted at children and have a play value on their own, such as specially designed personal computers, key boards, joy sticks or steering wheels
Interactive software, intended for leisure and entertainment, such as computer games, and their storage media, such as CDs
Babies’ soothers
Child-appealing luminaires
Electrical transformers for toys
Fashion accessories for children which are not for use in play