The Low Voltage Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1989

Interpretation

3.—(1) In these Regulations–

“the 1987 Act” means the Consumer Protection Act 1987(1);

“CENELEC Harmonisation Documents HD 21” means those documents relating to polyvinyl chloride insulated cables which contain technical specifications relating to the construction and testing of flexible cables and cords, that is, harmonisation documents numbered HD 21.1 S2, HD 21.2 S2, HD 21.5 S2 all published on 1st July 1984 and Amendment 1 to harmonisation document HD 21.5 S2 published on 1st January 1988, subject to any amendments made to any document in the series and approved by the Secretary of State;

“CENELEC Harmonisation Documents HD 22” means those documents relating to rubber insulated cables which contain technical specifications relating to the construction and testing of flexible cables and cords, that is, harmonisation documents numbered HD 22.1 S2, HD 22.2 S2, HD 22.3 S2 and HD 22.4 S2 all published on 1st July 1984, subject to any amendments made to any document in the series and approved by the Secretary of State;

“Community certification body” means a body which has been notified under article 11 of the low voltage Directive as a body which may establish the marks and certificates in accordance with article 10 of that Directive;

“electrical equipment” means, unless the context otherwise requires, any electrical equipment to which these Regulations apply by virtue of regulation 4 below;

“harmonised standard” means a standard harmonised in accordance with article 5 of the low voltage Directive;

“international safety provision” means a safety provision of a standard which has been published by the International Commission on the Rules for the Approval of Electrical Equipment or the International Electrotechnical Commission and which has been published in the Official Journal of the Communities pursuant to article 6 of the low voltage Directive;

“the low voltage Directive” means Council Directive No. 73/23/EEC(2) on the harmonisation of the laws of member States relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits;

“national safety provision” means a safety provision which has the force of law in a member State of the European Economic Community or which is contained in a standard published and not withdrawn by a national standards body, not being a safety provision which is to the same effect as a safety provision of a harmonised standard or as an international safety provision;

“national standards body” means a body which has been notified under article 11 of the low voltage Directive for the purposes of article 5 of that Directive;

“safe” has the same meaning as in section 19(1) of the 1987 Act, except that, for the purpose of these Regulations, the references in that subsection to “risk” shall be construed as including references to any risk of–

(a)

death or injury to domestic animals; and

(b)

damage to property;

and as excluding any risk arising from the improper installation or maintenance of the electrical equipment in question or from the use of the equipment in applications for which it is not made;

“safety provision” means a provision made for the purpose of ensuring that the equipment in question is safe;

“supply” (except in reference to the electricity supply) includes offering to supply, agreeing to supply, exposing for supply and possessing for supply, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly.

(2) For the purposes of regulation 7(2) below a national safety provision is applicable to equipment in a particular member State of the European Economic Community if–

(a) the provision has the force of law in that member State or the national standards body publishing it has its principal office there, and

(b) the equipment was not manufactured in any other member State of the European Economic Community.

(3) Any reference in these Regulations to an electric shock is a reference to an electric shock of such severity as to be liable to cause death or personal injury.

(1)

1987 c. 43.

(2)

OJ No. L77, 26.3.73, p.29.