The Bathroom Manufacturers Association has hit out at “unscrupulous manufacturers and importers” for habitually flouting strict regulations for bathroom products.
Chief executive Yvonne Orgill (pictured) stated that the recent Enforcement and Compliance report by the European Commission confirmed its suspicions regarding substandard and illegal products filtering through to consumers.
“This is outrageous and nothing short of a scandal,” slammed Orgill. “Consumers throughout the UK are being duped into purchasing goods which they genuinely believe to be up to standard and safe to use. But, because they don’t know where they were made and who made them, they could be spending hard-earned cash on substandard and illegal product. The new report confirms what we have been saying for years and action needs to be taken for the public good.”
Harmonised European Standards state that bathroom products must have the CE mark fixed to the product, instruction literature or packaging.
CE marking is a key indicator of a product’s compliance with the legislation. Although it is not a quality mark, it does indicate ‘fitness for purpose’.
Orgill claimed that BMA members embraced regulations and complied with the new laws when they became legally binding in 2013.
However, “devious manufacturers and importers” contravene the regulations, putting consumers at risk.
“The end consumer has the right to know that their bathroom products do comply with the regulations and installers need to know of this regulation to reinforce their commitment to professional practice,” added Orgill.
“Our industry is being adversely affected and consumers could be put into harm’s way. We will continue to be very vocal about the problem and highlight the issues with the relevant authorities.”