Marketplaces like bol.com and Amazon are increasingly dealing with adjusted laws and regulations, making the legal rules now applicable on these platforms as well. As a result, the sellers and partners of these platforms are also affected.
Bol.com has recently indicated that it will make the CE marking mandatory for a number of product groups and Amazon has informed sellers active in Germany and/or France that they will soon have to deal with EPR. Curious about what is already known about this CE marking and what it exactly entails? You can read all about it in this blog.
What exactly does a CE marking entail?
A CE marking can now be found on many consumer products. CE stands for Conformité Européenne, and this means that when a product has the CE marking, it complies with the applicable European laws and regulations. This includes, for example, fire safety. When a product has a CE marking, it can be traded within the European Economic Area (EEA).
CE Marking – bol.com
In 1992, the CE marking became mandatory for a large number of product groups within Europe. Product groups that fall under this include construction products, toys, mobile phones, and measuring instruments. With this marking, the manufacturer indicates that the product complies with all European regulations within this product group. If this marking is missing, the product cannot be sold within Europe. This is also why bol.com is implementing this marking on the website. After all, there are enough products that fall within these categories and are sold via bol.com.
Reporting on CE Marking
On January 4, 2022, almost all partners received an email from bol.com stating that the CE marking would become mandatory as of April 1. The initial information indicated that partners had to take a photo of all items that fell within the specified product groups and upload them to their account. This quickly proved to be an undesirable situation for both bol.com and the partners.
Bol.com has stated in a second communication that partners do not need to do anything for the time being and that the process must first be improved on bol.com's side. The platform expects to be ready with this in February. After that, they will inform their partners again. As a result, the deadline for implementation is no longer April 1, but is likely to be July 1, 2022.
What will this process look like?
As far as is known, the process will look approximately as follows. A distinction will first be made between existing and new assortments. For the existing assortment, a box will be added to the product information. In this box, it can be indicated whether the CE Marking is applicable or not. If this is the case, a text field must be filled in with the address of the importer. This address will not be visible to the customer. In addition to filling in this information, partners may also be asked separately for the correct documentation, and they must be able to provide this within a yet-to-be-determined period.
For new assortments that are listed on bol.com from July 1, photos must be uploaded. What exactly should be on the photo will be clarified with examples yet to be made. For new products, the following step-by-step plan will likely apply:
- Are you unsure whether the CE marking is mandatory for your items? Check it in this step-by-step plan from the RVO.
- Upload on bol.com a photo for each item showing the following points:
- The CE marking,
- the type, batch, series, or model number – or another identification method,
- the safety information in Dutch or English, and
- the trade name, brand name, or name and contact details of the manufacturer.
- Are you offering an item that has been placed on the market within the EU from a third country? Then the trade name, brand name, or name and contact details of the importer must also be on or with the item.
- This information can be on:
- a label,
- the packaging itself,
- a accompanying document, or
- a picture added to the photo.
- Is it toys and does the item have safety warnings? Then add these to the textual product information under 'Safety warnings'.
- Make sure you always have this information available, as both bol.com and the authorities can request this information.
Are you a manufacturer? Then you are responsible for preparing and signing the documents associated with the CE marking – such as the technical documentation and the EC declaration of conformity.
Note: if you offer an item under your own (brand or trade) name, you are considered a manufacturer by law.
Are you an importer of an item you purchased from a country outside the EU? Then you must have a copy of the EC declaration of conformity. You do not need to prepare or sign any technical documentation yourself.
Are you a distributor? Then you must provide the necessary information and documentation upon request to demonstrate the conformity of your product.
Do you want to know now if your product falls under the CE marking? Then you can best check this at:
https://ec.europa.eu/growth/single-market/ce-marking/manufacturers_en
How do you obtain a valid CE marking?
Bol.com has created a 6-step plan consisting of the following steps:
1. First, you must determine under which European directives and standards your item falls. You can do this by clicking on the link above and checking on that website whether your items fall into the product groups for which the CE marking is mandatory.
2. If your product falls under one of these groups, you can see with those guidelines which specific requirements your product must meet.
3. Contact your manufacturer or importer to check whether the item meets the legal requirements and that the correct tests have been conducted. Then request the declaration of conformity and the technical file. Once you have this in your possession, you must still verify its authenticity and completeness.
4. Check whether the relevant safety warnings and CE Marking are present. Do not forget to check whether the user instructions are clear and whether the packaging also meets the legal requirements. If you are in doubt, you can find additional information in the guidelines and standards you encountered in step 1.
5. Are you still unsure whether everything is correct? Then you may need a third party to help you verify all the information.
6. Service partners who can assist you with this and are affiliated with bol.com can be found on the partner platform.
Once you have completed all these steps, it is still important that you always have the declaration of conformity available, as both bol.com and the authorities can request this declaration.
In the next Follo Blog about “Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) from Amazon,” we will delve deeper into this new development within Amazon that sellers to German and French customers will have to deal with.
Do you have any questions about the CE marking? Or do you want more information about what Follo can do for your company in the field of Marketplaces? Be sure to contact Follo, our specialists are happy to help you further.
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