On Friday 6 November, the EU Council adopted its position on new rules aimed at simplifying the labelling of energy-related products and tyres in the EU, according to a press release.
The objective of this ‘Omnibus XII’ package is to reduce administrative formalities for businesses and make full use of digital tools.
The proposal involves amending the rules regarding the labelling of tyres (Regulation 2020/740) and energy-related products (Regulation 2017/1369), such as dishwashers, air conditioners and smartphones.
The amendment is also intended to ensure that consumers can access information about the products they purchase, specifically regarding energy efficiency and durability, even when the purchase is made through an intermediary, such as a heating system installer (see EUROPE 13895/4).
For energy labelling, the mandate proposes making the rescaling date the official date on which a category of energy-efficient products moves to a redesigned energy efficiency label, such as the EU’s A-to-G scale.
“Timelines in energy labelling following the rescaling date of a product were amended by the Council mandate as follows: the period during which products may continue to be sold with a non-rescaled label after the rescaling date was set to four months; a separate 12-month period has been introduced for products that are no longer placed on the market after the rescaling date or where the supplier ceases activity”.
This 12-month period may be extended for certain product groups, particularly to avoid functional products being discarded.
For tyres, the mandate adds a new provision designed to clarify the obligations of suppliers and distributers regarding the presentation of information in commercial communications.
For products on physical display, including representations of a product used for marketing or promotional purposes, energy labels must be displayable either physically or electronically, provided consumers can easily associate the label with the specific model, the mandate specifies.
Although the revision relies on QR codes, for some products “it may be appropriate to provide the possibility for a printed copy of the product information sheet”.
Link to the mandate: https://aeur.eu/f/oaw (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)