PPE expert Paul Varnsverry has called on the European Commission to act immediately to stop abuses of the clothing safety verification law.
Varnsverry, technical director of the PVA-PPE Group, a specialist on the testing, certification and verification of Personal Protective Equipment, has described a “troubling development” in the PPE certification system, amounting to “incompetence, at best, and dishonest practices, at worst, by the ‘gatekeepers’ of the process, the European Notified Bodies [organisations designated by individual EU countries to assess the conformity of certain products before being placed on the market]”.
“I have recently been made aware of two such organisations,” he said, “one based in Croatia and one in Italy – neither of which appears on the EU NANDO [New Approach Notified and Designated Organisations] database as being ‘scoped’ (accredited) with the special competency to evaluate motorcyclists’ protective clothing and equipment.
“Although not listed as accredited, they have issued EU type-examination certificates under the PPE Regulation. In the most recent case, it is believed the correct laboratory evaluations have been performed and ‘only’ the status of the certification is dubious.
“Copies of documentary evidence have been provided to me, in confidence. The label contained an error which first suspicions. The European Commission needs to act immediately to stop this activity.”
In addition to speaking with BDN on this issue, Varnsverry also contributed to an MCN article exposing a back protector that appeared to be stamped as CE Level 2 approved but when tested failed to meet even the Level 1 standard.
“The claim that this is an approved back protector is false and the foam pad is fraudulently marked. It is being mis-sold to motorcyclists as something the test evidence proves it is not”, Varnsverry stated in the MCN article.
“Whilst it is not against the law to sell a bike jacket without a back protector, it is illegal to sell armour which claims to be CE certified when it is not, leaving riders at risk of injury,” MCN commented.
MCN says it has reported the findings to Trading Standards for further investigation.
FAKE HELMETS
MCN has also highlighted the growing scourge of fake and dangerous helmets. The newspaper said the problem was now “worse than ever” – in terms of both supply and sophistication. Although they look convincing, the fake AGVs covered in the article lacked the necessary ECE labels.
ILLEGAL BATTERY ACID
BDN is also looking into the widespread availability online of motorcycle batteries with separate acid packs, the sale of which became illegal in the UK from 1 July 2019. While UK suppliers appear to be adhering to the law, sellers from Italy, France and Germany continue to offer them for sale on ecommerce sites, increasing the risk of acid attacks and taking away legitimate sales from British dealers and distributors.
BDN has reported the issue to Trading Standards which is looking into the situation.
Let us know your thoughts: [email protected]