OMP product testing programme: October 2021 to September 2022

Published 23 August 2023

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/online-marketplace-product-testing-programme/omp-product-testing-programme-october-2021-to-september-2022

In October 2021, the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) commenced a programme of test purchasing to check compliance of products available to UK consumers from specific online marketplaces (OMPs). The purpose was to understand the products available and the risks they posed and to take appropriate enforcement action.

The categories of products targeted were those that appeared routinely on the OPSS list of recalls and alerts and the EU Safety Gate system. The actual products test purchased were from a low price range from unbranded or unknown branded products with a fairly quick delivery time, had poor product reviews (less than 3*) or appeared to be of low quality in the listing photos. As the products purchased were targeted to be those that were more likely to be non-compliant, the data in this report is not representative of all products sold by OMPs and cannot be used for national estimates. Products were targeted based on risk and with the expectation that enforcement and corrective action would be taken where non-compliance was detected.

The product categories were:

In the first quarter, three-quarters of the products were purchased from five large OMPs (Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Wish and AliExpress) with the remaining products bought from 18 smaller OMPs. In the next two quarters products were only bought from the five large OMPs, and in the final quarter presented in this report, products were purchased from the five large OMPs plus Fruugo.

The products were received by OPSS and subjected to assessment for compliance with the relevant regulatory requirements. This included consideration of the product labelling and visual inspection for clear regulatory breaches. In the third and fourth quarters, some products were submitted for laboratory testing.

The results of these inspections were recorded as compliant or non-compliant. It should be noted that a product recorded as “compliant” may have been assessed in terms of labelling or visual examination only; it does not necessarily indicate that the product has undergone assessment against all the requirements of the relevant regulations.

Note: 5 large OMPs = Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Wish and AliExpress / 18 smaller OMPs = Banggood, DesertCart, Ecrater, Fishpond, Folksy, Fruugo, Grandado, Groupon, Joom, Katy Craft, ManoMano, Msale24, NotontheHighStreet, OnBuy, PATPAT, Shpock, Wayfair, Wowcher

This report excludes:

Where non-compliance was found, businesses, including OMPs, were informed, products were de-listed, and enforcement action was taken where appropriate.DBT complies with the United Kingdom Statistics Authority (UKSA) Code of Practice for Official Statistics. This has set out the revision policy for this release and will notify users when revisions are made to statistics.

OPSS found that 1,832 (81 per cent) of the 2,260 products that it targeted for testing from OMPs between October 2021 and September 2022 were non-compliant.

Figure 1 shows compliance by product category for the OMPs combined, excluding a further 26 products that were assessed but were not one of the product categories covered by the project. Each product type was reviewed against a different set of regulations and standards and so comparisons across product categories should be made with caution.

Toys for <36 months with small parts and/or strangulation hazards

Regulation/s tested against

Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011

High-level testing specification

BS EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018 – Labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

BS EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018

Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011

Toys with small parts and small high-powered magnets

Regulation/s tested against

Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011

High-level testing specification

BS EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018 – Labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

BS EN 71-1:2014+A1:2018

Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011

Battery charger

Regulation/s tested against

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016

High-level testing specification

EN 62368-1 – Partial labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

EN 62368:2014+A11:2017

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016

Hair curlers / straighteners

Regulation/s tested against

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016

High-level testing specification

EN 60335-1 & EN 60335-2-23 – Partial labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

EN 60335-1:2012+A11:2014+A13:2017 and EN 60335-2- 23:2003+A1:2008+A11:2010+A2:2015

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016

Multiple port plug tower / extension sockets

Regulation/s tested against

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016

High-level testing specification

BS 1363-2:2016+A1:2018 – Partial labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

BS 1363-2:2016+A1:2018

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016

Table lamp / light chain

Regulation/s tested against

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016

High-level testing specification

EN 60598-1:2015 & BS EN 60598-2-4:2018 (Table lamp) / EN 60598-2-20:2015 (light chain) – Partial labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

EN 60598-1:2015 & BS EN 60598-2-4:2018 (Table lamp) / EN 60598-2-20:2015 (light chain)

Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016

Skin lighteners

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2009/1223 and Cosmetic Enforcement Regs 2013

High-level testing specification

Selected Chemicals Labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

Regulation 2009/1223

Teeth whiteners

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2009/1223 and Cosmetic Enforcement Regs 2013

High-level testing specification

Selected chemicals labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

Regulation 2009/1223

Hair / eyelash dyes

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2009/1223 and Cosmetic Enforcement Regs 2013

High-level testing specification

Selected chemicals labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

Regulation 2009/1223

Lipstick / lip gloss

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2009/1223 and Cosmetic Enforcement Regs 2013

High-level testing specification

Selected chemicals labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

Regulation 2009/1223

Lifejacket

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2016/425 and the Personal Protective Equipment (Enforcement) Regulations 2018

High-level testing specification

EN ISO 12402-9:2006+A1:2011 – Labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

EN ISO 12402-9:2006+A1:2011

Regulation 2016/425

Climbing harnesses

Regulation/s tested against

Regulation 2016/425 and the Personal Protective Equipment (Enforcement) Regulations 2018

High-level testing specification

Labelling requirements as per regulation

Detailed testing specification

Regulation 2016/425

Supply of Machinery (Safety) Regulations 2008

OPSS has identified that toothed saw blade attachments, available for sale for use with angle grinders, are unsafe. Therefore all chain saw attachments purchased were considered to be unsafe without specific testing being carried out.