The Measuring Instruments Regulations 2016

InterpretationE+W+S

This section has no associated Explanatory Memorandum

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1985 Act” means the Weights and Measures Act 1985;

F1...

F2...

“active electrical energy meter” means a device which measures the active electrical energy consumed in a circuit which is intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use;

[F3“approved body” has the meaning given to it in regulation 53 (approved bodies);]

“authorised representative” means any person established [F4in the United Kingdom] who has received a written mandate from a manufacturer to act on the manufacturer's behalf in relation to specified tasks;

“automatic weighing instrument” means an instrument that—

(a)

determines the mass of a product without the intervention of an operator; and

(b)

follows a predetermined programme of automatic processes characteristic of the instrument intended to determine the mass of a body by using the action of gravity on that body;

“automatic gravimetric filing instrument” means an automatic weighing instrument that fills containers with a predetermined and virtually constant mass of product from bulk;

“automatic catchweigher” means an automatic weighing instrument that determines the mass of pre-assembled discrete loads (for example pre-packages) or single loads of loose material;

“automatic checkweigher” means an automatic catchweigher which sub-divides articles of different mass into two or more sub-groups according to the value of the difference between their mass and the nominal set point;

“automatic discontinuous totaliser” means an automatic weighing instrument that—

(a)

determines the mass of a bulk product by dividing the product into discrete loads;

(b)

determines in sequence and sums the mass of each discrete load; and

(c)

delivers each discrete load to bulk;

“automatic rail-weighbridge” means an automatic weighing instrument having a load receptor inclusive of rails for conveying railway vehicles;

“automatic weight grading instrument” means an instrument which sub-divides articles of different mass into several sub-groups, each characterised by a given mass range;

“beltweigher” means an automatic weighing instrument that continuously determines the mass of a bulk product on a conveyor belt without systematic subdivision of the product without interrupting the movement of the conveyor belt;

“capacity serving measure” means a capacity serving measure (such as a drinking glass, jug or thimble measure) designed to determine a specified volume of a liquid (other than a pharmaceutical product) which is sold for immediate consumption;

F5...

“commencement date” means the date referred to in regulation 1(2);

F6...

“competent authority” means any person who is pursuant to regulation 67 (enforcement of the Regulations), authorised to enforce these Regulations;

“compliance notice” means a notice served in accordance with regulation 68(2);

“conformity assessment” means the process demonstrating whether the essential requirements relating to a [F7regulated] measuring instrument have been met;

“conformity assessment body” means a body that performs conformity assessment activities including calibration, testing, certification and inspection;

[F8“declaration of conformity” means a declaration of conformity required to be drawn up in accordance with chapter 3 of Part 4;]

[F8“designated standard” has the meaning given to it in regulation 2A;]

[F8“design examination certificate” means a design certificate issued by an approved body in accordance with Module H1 in Schedule 1B]

F9...

“the Directive” means Directive 2014/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of measuring instruments M1 F10...;

[F11“disqualification mark” means a marking in the form set out in paragraph 1 of Schedule A1;]

“distributor” means any person in the supply chain, other than a manufacturer or an importer, who makes a [F12regulated] measuring instrument available on the market;

“economic operator” means a manufacturer, authorised representative, importer or distributor;

“enforcement notice” means a notice served in accordance with regulation 69(2);

“enforcement officer” means—

(a)

an inspector; or

(b)

a person appointed by the Secretary of State to act on the Secretary of State's behalf to enforce these Regulations;

“essential requirements” means, in relation to a [F13regulated] measuring instrument (or a class of that measuring instrument), the requirements specified as being applicable in relation to that measuring instrument (or that class) in Schedule [F141A and 1C to 1J];

F15...

F16...

F17...

“exhaust gas analyser” means a [F18regulated] measuring instrument that serves, in relation to a motor vehicle engine with spark ignition, to determine at the moisture level of the sample analysed the volume fractions of the following exhaust gas components—

(a)

carbon monoxide;

(b)

carbon dioxide;

(c)

oxygen; and

(d)

hydrocarbons;

“gas meter” means an instrument designed to measure, memorise and display the quantity of fuel gas (volume or mass) that has passed it which is intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use;

F19...

[F20“importer” means a person who—

(a)

is established in the United Kingdom and places a regulated measuring instrument from a country outside of the United Kingdom on the market; or

(b)

is established in Northern Ireland and places a regulated measuring instrument on the market that has been supplied to them for distribution, consumption or use in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge, from an EEA state;]

“in writing” includes text that is—

(a)

transmitted by electronic means;

(b)

received in legible form; and

(c)

capable of being used for subsequent reference;

“M marking” means a marking applied to a [F21regulated] measuring instrument which consists of the capital letter ‘M’ and the last two digits of the year of its affixing surrounded by a rectangle, the height of which is equal to that of the [F22UK] marking applied to that instrument;

F23...

“make available on the market” means any supply of a [F24regulated] measuring instrument for distribution, or use on [F25market of Great Britain] in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge, and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“manufacturer” means a person who—

(a)

manufactures a [F26regulated] measuring instrument, or has a [F26regulated] measuring instrument designed or manufactured, and markets that [F26regulated] measuring instrument under their name or trade mark; or

(b)

is to be treated as a manufacturer by virtue of regulation 6(2);

“market surveillance authority” means the Secretary of State acting in the capacity of the market surveillance authority pursuant to the designation made by regulation 62 (the market surveillance authority) F27...;

“material measure” means—

(a)

a material measure of length; or

(b)

a capacity serving measure;

“material measure of length” means an instrument comprising scale marks whose distances are given in legal units of length;

F28...

F29...

“non-water liquid measuring system” means a measuring system for the continuous and dynamic measurement of quantities of liquids other than water where—

(a)

the system comprises a meter and all devices required to ensure correct measurement or intended to facilitate the measuring operations; and

(b)

the expression “meter” means an instrument designed to measure continuously, memorise and display the quantity at metering conditions of liquid flowing through the measurement transducer in a closed, fully charged conduit;

“normative document” means a document containing technical specifications adopted by the International Organisation of Legal Metrology;

F30...

F31...

F32...

“place on the market” means the first making available of a [F33regulated] instrument on the market [F34of Great Britain] and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“putting into use” means the first use of a [F35regulated] measuring instrument intended for the end-user for the purposes for which it was intended and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“RAMS” means Regulation (EC) 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council setting out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 M2 (as from time to time amended);

“recall” means any measure aimed at achieving the return of a regulated measuring instrument that has already been made available to the end-user and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“regulated measuring instrument” means an instrument of the kind referred to in regulation 3(2);

“relevant conformity assessment procedure” means, in relation to a particular [F36regulated] measuring instrument, a conformity assessment procedure specified in [F37Schedules 1C to 1J] as being applicable to that instrument;

“relevant economic operator” means, in relation to a [F38regulated] measuring instrument, an economic operator with obligations in respect of that [F38regulated] measuring instrument under Part 2;

[F39“re-qualification mark” means a marking in the form set out in paragraph 2 of Schedule A1;]

F40...

“taximeter” means a device that works together with a signal generator to make a [F41regulated] measuring instrument with the device measuring duration, calculating distance on the basis of a signal delivered by the distance signal generator and calculating and displaying the fare to be paid for a trip on the basis of the calculated distance or the measured duration of the trip, or both;

“technical documentation” means documentation prepared in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 4;

“technical specification” means a document that prescribes technical requirements to be fulfilled by a [F42regulated] measuring instrument;

F43...

[F44“type examination certificate” means a type examination certificate issued by an approved body in accordance with Module B in Schedule 1B;]

[F44“UK marking” means the marking in the form set out in Annex 2 of RAMS;]

[F44“UK national accreditation body” means the body appointed by the Secretary of State in accordance with Article 4 of RAMS;]

F45...

F46...

F47...

“water meter” means an instrument designed to measure, memorise and display, the volume at metering conditions of water passing through the measurement transducer for the measurement of volumes of clean, cold or heated water intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use

“weights and measures authority” means a local weights and measures authority within the meaning set out in section 69 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 M3; and

“withdraw”, when used in relation to a [F48regulated] measuring instrument, means taking any measure aimed at preventing a [F48regulated] measuring instrument in the supply chain from being made available on the market and related expressions are to be construed accordingly.

[F49(1A) Schedules 1A to 1J reproduce the provisions of Annexes I to V, VII to X and XII to the Directive (respectively) with amendments to correct deficiencies in retained EU law.

(1B) A reference to a provision of Schedules 1A to 1J is a reference to the equivalent provision of the relevant Annex to the Directive as set out in the relevant Schedule.]

F50(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3) Other expressions used in these Regulations have in relation to the application of these Regulations to—

(a)Great Britain, the same meanings as in the Weights and Measures Act 1985; and

(b)Northern Ireland, the same meanings as it the Weights and Measures (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 M4.

Extent Information

E1This version of this provision extends to England and Wales and Scotland only; a separate version has been created for Northern Ireland only

Textual Amendments

F10Words in reg. 2(1) omitted (E.W.S.) (1.10.2024) by virtue of The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (S.I. 2024/696), regs. 1(2), 18(2) (with reg. 23)

F25Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (E.W.S.) (31.12.2020) by S.I. 2019/696, Sch. 27 para. 2(2)(t)(ii) (as substituted by The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment to Extent and Meaning of Market) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/676), regs. 1(1), 4(15)(a))

F34Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (E.W.S.) (31.12.2020) by S.I. 2019/696, Sch. 27 para. 2(2)(bb)(ii) (as substituted by The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment to Extent and Meaning of Market) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/676), regs. 1(1), 4(15)(b))

Marginal Citations

M1OJ L 96, 29.3.2014, p.149.

M2OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p.30.

InterpretationN.I.

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1985 Act” means the Weights and Measures Act 1985;

“accreditation” bears the same meaning as in point 10 of Article 2 of RAMS;

“accreditation certificate” means a certificate, issued by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service or a national accreditation body in another [F51relevant] state, attesting that a conformity assessment body meets the notified body requirements;

“active electrical energy meter” means a device which measures the active electrical energy consumed in a circuit which is intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use;

“authorised representative” means any person established within the [F52relevant market] who has received a written mandate from a manufacturer to act on the manufacturer's behalf in relation to specified tasks;

“automatic weighing instrument” means an instrument that—

(a)

determines the mass of a product without the intervention of an operator; and

(b)

follows a predetermined programme of automatic processes characteristic of the instrument intended to determine the mass of a body by using the action of gravity on that body;

“automatic gravimetric filing instrument” means an automatic weighing instrument that fills containers with a predetermined and virtually constant mass of product from bulk;

“automatic catchweigher” means an automatic weighing instrument that determines the mass of pre-assembled discrete loads (for example pre-packages) or single loads of loose material;

“automatic checkweigher” means an automatic catchweigher which sub-divides articles of different mass into two or more sub-groups according to the value of the difference between their mass and the nominal set point;

“automatic discontinuous totaliser” means an automatic weighing instrument that—

(a)

determines the mass of a bulk product by dividing the product into discrete loads;

(b)

determines in sequence and sums the mass of each discrete load; and

(c)

delivers each discrete load to bulk;

“automatic rail-weighbridge” means an automatic weighing instrument having a load receptor inclusive of rails for conveying railway vehicles;

“automatic weight grading instrument” means an instrument which sub-divides articles of different mass into several sub-groups, each characterised by a given mass range;

“beltweigher” means an automatic weighing instrument that continuously determines the mass of a bulk product on a conveyor belt without systematic subdivision of the product without interrupting the movement of the conveyor belt;

“capacity serving measure” means a capacity serving measure (such as a drinking glass, jug or thimble measure) designed to determine a specified volume of a liquid (other than a pharmaceutical product) which is sold for immediate consumption;

“CE marking” means a marking which takes the form set out in Annex II of RAMS;

“commencement date” means the date referred to in regulation 1(2);

“Commission” means the Commission of the European Union;

“competent authority” means any person who is pursuant to regulation 67 (enforcement of the Regulations), authorised to enforce these Regulations;

“compliance notice” means a notice served in accordance with regulation 68(2);

“conformity assessment” means the process demonstrating whether the essential requirements relating to a measuring instrument have been met;

“conformity assessment body” means a body that performs conformity assessment activities including calibration, testing, certification and inspection;

“dimensional measuring instrument” means—

(a)

a length measuring instrument that serves for the determination of the length of rope type materials (for example textiles, bands, cables) during feed motion of the product to be measured;

(b)

an area measuring instrument which serves for the determination of the area of irregular shaped objects, for example for leather; or

(c)

a multi-dimensional measuring instrument which serves for the determination of the edge length (length, height, width) of the smallest enclosing rectangular parallelepiped of a product;

“the Directive” means Directive 2014/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of measuring instruments F53 and references to the Directive (or a specific provision of it) are references to the Directive (or that provision) as from time to time amended;

[F11“disqualification mark” means a marking in the form set out in paragraph 1 of Schedule A1;]

“distributor” means any person in the supply chain, other than a manufacturer or an importer, who makes a measuring instrument available on the market;

“economic operator” means a manufacturer, authorised representative, importer or distributor;

“enforcement notice” means a notice served in accordance with regulation 69(2);

“enforcement officer” means—

(a)

an inspector; or

(b)

a person appointed by the Secretary of State to act on the Secretary of State's behalf to enforce these Regulations;

“essential requirements” means, in relation to a measuring instrument (or a class of that measuring instrument), the requirements specified as being applicable in relation to that measuring instrument (or that class) in Schedule 1;

“EU declaration of conformity” means a declaration of conformity required to be drawn up in accordance with chapter 3 of Part 4;

“EU-design examination certificate” means an EU-design certificate issued by a notified body in accordance with Module H1 of Annex II to the Directive;

“EU-type examination certificate” means an EU-type examination certificate issued by a notified body in accordance with Module B of Annex II to the Directive;

“exhaust gas analyser” means a measuring instrument that serves, in relation to a motor vehicle engine with spark ignition, to determine at the moisture level of the sample analysed the volume fractions of the following exhaust gas components—

(a)

carbon monoxide;

(b)

carbon dioxide;

(c)

oxygen; and

(d)

hydrocarbons;

“gas meter” means an instrument designed to measure, memorise and display the quantity of fuel gas (volume or mass) that has passed it which is intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use;

“harmonised standard” has the meaning set out in point 1(c) of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 1025/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on European standardisation F54 (as amended from time to time);

“importer” means any person who—

(a)

is established within the [F55relevant market] ; and

(b)

places a measuring instrument from a [F56market outside of the relevant market on the relevant] market;

“in writing” includes text that is—

(a)

transmitted by electronic means;

(b)

received in legible form; and

(c)

capable of being used for subsequent reference;

“M marking” means a marking applied to a measuring instrument which consists of the capital letter ‘M’ and the last two digits of the year of its affixing surrounded by a rectangle, the height of which is equal to that of the CE marking applied to that instrument;

“measuring instrument” has the meaning in regulation 3(1);

“make available on the market” means any supply of a measuring instrument for distribution, or use on the [F57relevant] market in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge, and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“manufacturer” means a person who—

(a)

manufactures a measuring instrument, or has a measuring instrument designed or manufactured, and markets that measuring instrument under their name or trade mark; or

(b)

is to be treated as a manufacturer by virtue of regulation 6(2);

“market surveillance authority” means the Secretary of State acting in the capacity of the market surveillance authority pursuant to the designation made by regulation 62 (the market surveillance authority) and where the context requires includes a market surveillance authority in another [F58relevant] state;

“material measure” means—

(a)

a material measure of length; or

(b)

a capacity serving measure;

“material measure of length” means an instrument comprising scale marks whose distances are given in legal units of length;

“national accreditation body” means the national accreditation body as defined in point 11 of Article 2 of RAMS;

[F59“NI Protocol obligation” means any obligation created or arising by or under the Protocol on Ireland/ Northern Ireland in the EU withdrawal agreement, whether or not an obligation to which section 7A(2) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 applies;]

“non-prescribed measuring instrument” means a measuring instrument of a kind referred to in regulation 3(3);

“non-water liquid measuring system” means a measuring system for the continuous and dynamic measurement of quantities of liquids other than water where—

(a)

the system comprises a meter and all devices required to ensure correct measurement or intended to facilitate the measuring operations; and

(b)

the expression “meter” means an instrument designed to measure continuously, memorise and display the quantity at metering conditions of liquid flowing through the measurement transducer in a closed, fully charged conduit;

“normative document” means a document containing technical specifications adopted by the International Organisation of Legal Metrology;

“notified body” means a conformity assessment body that has been notified to the Commission in accordance with Part 5 and includes, where the context so requires, a notified body designated as such in another [F60relevant] state in accordance with the Directive;

“notified body requirements” means the requirements set out in Schedule 5 (notified body requirements);

“notifying authority” means the notifying authority within the meaning of regulation 54 (the notifying authority)

“place on the market” means the first making available of a measuring instrument on the [F61relevant market] and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“putting into use” means the first use of a measuring instrument intended for the end-user for the purposes for which it was intended and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“RAMS” means Regulation (EC) 765/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council setting out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 339/93 F62 (as from time to time amended);

“recall” means any measure aimed at achieving the return of a regulated measuring instrument that has already been made available to the end-user and related expressions are to be construed accordingly;

“regulated measuring instrument” means an instrument of the kind referred to in regulation 3(2);

“relevant conformity assessment procedure” means, in relation to a particular measuring instrument, a conformity assessment procedure specified in Schedule 1 as being applicable to that instrument;

“relevant economic operator” means, in relation to a measuring instrument, an economic operator with obligations in respect of that measuring instrument under Part 2;

[F63“relevant market” means—

(a)

the market in Northern Ireland; and

(b)

the market of the EEA states;]

[F63“relevant state” means—

(a)

Northern Ireland; or

(b)

any EEA state;]

[F39“re-qualification mark” means a marking in the form set out in paragraph 2 of Schedule A1;]

“sub-assembly” means a hardware device mentioned as such in the instrument-specific annexes to the Directive that functions independently and makes up a measuring instrument together with other sub-assemblies with which it is compatible, or with a measuring instrument with which it is compatible;

“taximeter” means a device that works together with a signal generator to make a measuring instrument with the device measuring duration, calculating distance on the basis of a signal delivered by the distance signal generator and calculating and displaying the fare to be paid for a trip on the basis of the calculated distance or the measured duration of the trip, or both;

“technical documentation” means documentation prepared in accordance with Chapter 2 of Part 4;

“technical specification” means a document that prescribes technical requirements to be fulfilled by a measuring instrument;

“thermal energy meter” means an instrument designed to measure the thermal energy which, in a thermal energy exchange circuit, is given up by a liquid called the thermal energy-conveying liquid which is intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use and includes the following sub-assemblies, flow sensors, temperature sensor pairs and calculators where these are manufactured separately;

[F64“UK(NI) indication” means the marking in the form set out in Schedule 1 to the Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (UK(NI) Indication) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020;]

“Union harmonisation legislation” means any European Union legislation harmonising the conditions for the marketing of products;

“United Kingdom Accreditation Service” means the company limited by guarantee incorporated in England and Wales under number 3076190;

“volume conversion device” means a device fitted to a gas meter that automatically converts the quantity measured at metering conditions into a quantity at the specified conditions to which the measured quantity of fluid is converted;

“water meter” means an instrument designed to measure, memorise and display, the volume at metering conditions of water passing through the measurement transducer for the measurement of volumes of clean, cold or heated water intended for residential, commercial or light industrial use

“weights and measures authority” means a local weights and measures authority within the meaning set out in section 69 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 F65; and

“withdraw”, when used in relation to a measuring instrument, means taking any measure aimed at preventing a measuring instrument in the supply chain from being made available on the market and related expressions are to be construed accordingly.

(2) A regulated measuring instrument that meets the requirements of the Directive by virtue of the laws of another [F66relevant] state is to be treated as meeting the requirements of these Regulations (except any requirement of these Regulations for anything to be written in English) and references to a regulated measuring instrument being in conformity with these Regulations are to be construed accordingly.

(3) Other expressions used in these Regulations have in relation to the application of these Regulations to—

(a)Great Britain, the same meanings as in the Weights and Measures Act 1985; and

(b)Northern Ireland, the same meanings as it the Weights and Measures (Northern Ireland) Order 1981 F67.

Extent Information

E2This version of this provision extends to Northern Ireland only; a separate version has been created for England and Wales and Scotland only

Textual Amendments

F53OJ L 96, 29.3.2014, p.149.

F54OJ L 316, 14.11.2012, p.12.

F62OJ L 218, 13.8.2008, p.30.