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
1) Introduction and methodology
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:
- Cosmetics
- Small mains powered electricals
- Products containing button batteries
- Toys
- Category 3 (complex) personal protective equipment (PPE) intended to protect users against very serious risk such as death or irreversible damage to health
- Products already subject to OPSS product safety alerts – for example angle grinder chainsaw attachments and magnetic toys
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.
Table 1: Project definitions
| Quarter | Inspection | OMPs included | Product types | Number of products purchased |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 Q3 | Visual | 5 large + 18 smaller OMPs | All | 957 |
| 2021-22 Q4 | Visual | 5 large OMPs | All | 600 |
| 2022-23 Q1 | Visual and laboratory | 5 large OMPs | Toys | 365 |
| 2022-23 Q2 | Visual and laboratory | 5 large OMPs plus Fruugo | Small mains powered electricals | 349 |
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:
- 2 products erroneously received that were outside OPSS’ remit (i.e. food, medicine, automobile related products)
- 9 products that did not have their compliance assessed, for example, were sent to the wrong laboratory or were out of scope of the project and so the assessment wasn’t applied consistently
How the data can be used
- Product compliance can be shown by individual product category.
- The rate of product compliance reflects the products assessed as part of this specific programme. The rate does not reflect the overall level of compliance of products from online marketplaces as the programme was targeted on known areas of risk.
How the data cannot be used
- Product compliance rates cannot be used to estimate compliance at a national level due to the sampling methodology used. Product selectors were tasked with picking targeted products where possible, and this will have resulted in bias to the sample.
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.
2) Compliancy status of products
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.
3) Compliance of products by product category
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.
Figure 1: Compliance of products purchased from OMPs by product category
Compliance of products purchased from OMPs: totals in figure 1
| Product | Compliant | Non-compliant |
|---|---|---|
| Toys | 144 | 585 |
| Small mains powered electricals | 84 | 431 |
| Button battery | 54 | 275 |
| Category 3 PPE | 39 | 276 |
| Cosmetics | 102 | 224 |
| Safety alert – chainsaw disc | 0 | 7 |
| Safety alert – magnetic toys | 2 | 11 |
| All products | 425 | 1809 |
Annex: Regulations applied to each product category
Toys
Product
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
- Clause 5.1 b
- Clause 5.4.2
Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011
- Regulation 18 (1)
- Regulation 19
- Regulation 20
- Regulation 27
- Art 19 2(a)
Product
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
- Clause 5.1 b
- Clause 4.23
Toys (Safety) Regulations 2011
- Regulation 18 (1)
- Regulation 19
- Regulation 20
- Regulation 27
- Art 19 2(a)
Small electrical items
Product
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
- Clause 5.3
- Clause 5.4.9
- Clause 5.4.2 and 5.4.3
Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016
- Regulation 6
- Regulation 39
- Regulation 8
- Regulation 18
Product
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
- Clause 8
- Clause 13
- Clause 29
Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016
- Regulation 6
- Regulation 39
- Regulation 8
- Regulation 18
Product
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
- Clause 8
- Clause 9
- Clause 15
Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016
- Regulation 6
- Regulation 39
- Regulation 8
- Regulation 18
Product
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)
- Clause 8
- Clause 10
- Clause 11
Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulation 2016
- Regulation 6
- Regulation 39
- Regulation 8
- Regulation 18
Cosmetics
Product
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
- Determination of concentration of mercury and hydroquinone
- Article 19 – Labelling
Product
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
- Determination of concentration of hydrogen peroxide
- Article 19 – Labelling
Product
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
- Determination of concentration of p-phenylenediamine
- Article 10 – Labelling
Product
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
- Determination of concentration of antimony (Sb), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg)
- Article 19 – Labelling
PPE
Product
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
- Clause 5.5.9
Regulation 2016/425
- Article 8
- Article 10
- Article 17
Product
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
- Article 8
- Article 10
- Article 17
Chainsaw attachments
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.