When it comes to children, material safety is even more important.
That’s why, when importing from China (or any other non-European country), one of the most stringent directives is the so-called Toy Safety Directive, which regulates the production and import of toys within the European Union.
The Toy Safety Directive (EN 71)
The directive includes a series of safety standards (EN 71) that must be complied with by all toys sold within the European Union. This directive is part of the EC rules, like many others, and is intended to ensure the safety of toys produced or imported into Europe.
The main factors that must be taken into consideration are the following:
Mechanical
components Noise
Fireproof
properties Chemical
composition Electrical
safety Hygiene
Radiation
Although EC directives are, in general, quite stringent, when it comes to safeguarding the safety of children they become even stricter and more complicated to comply with. In particular, the Toy Safety Directive is divided into thirteen parts:
EN 71-1: Physical and Mechanical Properties
EN 71-2: Flammability Rating
EN 71-3: Migration of certain elements
EN 71-4: Experimental Sets for Chemistry and Related Activities
EN 71-5: Chemical games (sets), excluding experimental sets for chemistry
EN 71-6: Graphic symbols and labels concerning the minimum age of use
EN 71-7: Finger Paints – Requirements and Test Methods
EN 71-8: Swings, slides and other outdoor games
EN 71-9: Organic Chemical Compounds – Requirements
EN 71-10: Organic Chemical Compounds – Sample Preparation and Extraction
EN 71-11: Organic Chemical Compounds – Methods of Analysis
EN 71-12: N-nitrosamines and N-nitrosatable substances
EN 71-13: Olfactory toys, taste toys, cosmetic kits and tabletop taste kits
EN 71-14: Safety of Toys – Part 14: Trampolines for Domestic Use
European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (Cenelec): Various regulations affecting the safety of electric toys
The number of standards that apply to a given toy varies depending on the nature of the product. For example, if you import dolls, you certainly don’t have to worry about complying with the EN 71-7 standard (finger paints) or EN 71-8 (swings, slides and other outdoor games). Click here for a more detailed description of each policy.
Is it mandatory to comply with EN 71 standards when importing toys from China?
Yes. There is no difference between making the product in Europe or importing it from another country: however, the EN 71 standards must be complied with. The problem is that it is sometimes difficult to understand whether a given product is to be considered a “toy” or not within the meaning of the directive. The most common definition is as follows: if a product can be used for gaming and is intended for children under 14 years of age, then it must comply with the directive.
The main responsibilities of the importer are varied and are constantly updated, here are some of them:
Ensure that the supplier manufactures products that comply with the directive
Make sure your company name and address is printed on the product and packaging
Ensure that transport or waiting in the warehouse does not affect compliance with the directive
Ensure that samples from all production batches are tested in the laboratory
Maintain a list of complaints about the product
Inform your local authorities if you have imported a non-compliant product
Keep a copy of all documents related to the product (laboratory test results, for example) for at least ten years
Make sure that the CE marking is printed on the product (or on the packaging, if printing it on the product is impossible)
Make sure the product is accompanied by an instruction manual
Are Chinese toys always compliant with the Toy Safety Directive?
No. In fact, most Chinese suppliers wouldn’t know where to start when it comes to making a toy that complies with European regulations. It seems that only 12% of toy suppliers on commercial portals such as Alibaba.com claim to be able to produce toys that comply with the Directive.
Many Chinese suppliers tend to lie about certificates in order to secure as many European or American customers as possible. So, since we know from experience that a large part of the certificates declared are false or expired, we would like to say that only 3-5% of Chinese toy suppliers are qualified to export to Europe.
Does this mean that the European market is saturated with non-compliant (and therefore illegal) toys?
The truth lies in the middle. In fact, there are many non-compliant toys in Europe; This is confirmed by the many seizures that take place every year, especially since the introduction of the new directive in 2011.
At the same time, the reason why so many Chinese suppliers do not comply with European regulations such as the directive is that they simply do not export to Europe. Because? The reason is that making products suitable for the European market is much more difficult than making products that comply with, for example, Vietnamese or Indonesian regulations (with all due respect). In fact, it is necessary to pay close attention to the materials and components that are used, as well as to implement a quality management system.
Not only does this require more organization than the average Chinese supplier has, but it also comes at a cost. So many suppliers choose not to pay too much attention to the directive (keep in mind that this also applies to other European directives such as, for example, the RoHS directive for heavy metals or the REACH directive on chemicals).
In summary, a Chinese supplier has an interest in making products that comply with the Toy Safety Directive only if it intends to export toys within the European Union. At this point I hope you will be clear why only 3-5% of Chinese suppliers are able to make toys in accordance with the law.
The problem, however, is that many dishonest suppliers will assure you that they can make toys that comply with European directives simply because they have every interest in selling you the products even if they are not up to standard. In fact, it is the importer who is legally responsible – both civilly and criminally – for compliance with European directives, certainly not the Chinese supplier.
Here’s how to make sure that the toys we want to import comply with the Toy Safety Directive:
- Supplier verification
First of all, you should never buy toys – in fact, you should not even start negotiations – with a supplier who cannot prove that they have made products that comply with the directive in the past. And the only way to get the evidence is to request laboratory tests on toys made in the past and verify their validity.
Such “proof” is necessary because, if you asked them, any Chinese supplier would tell you that they can certainly make toys in accordance with the law as they hope to close the deal and secure a new customer. But this promise is often in vain. Conversely, if a supplier has made and exported compliant toys to Europe in the past, then there is a good chance that they will also be able to do so in the future.
A final note: one or two positive test results are not enough as it is still too risky a situation. The supplier may have been lucky and passed the tests by chance. Or, worse, he had to repeat the tests ten times before being able to pass them.
You need a supplier who can always produce products that are up to standard, someone who has a team of engineers who fully understand the EN 71 directives, and who has implemented a quality management system. The supplier’s word cannot be trusted, a supplier should be able to show you many positive test results from past productions.
- Laboratory tests
The second step is to make sure that the products you are buying are up to standard. Trusting laboratory tests carried out on behalf of past customers is not enough as the materials used – and perhaps even the machinery used to produce the goods – will be different. So the fact that a supplier was able to produce compliant products a year ago does not mean that it can do it again today. That’s why, when importing toys from China, it’s mandatory to test some samples taken from your production batch.
There are several reputable companies that can test samples of your toys to see if they comply with the directive. For example, SGS, TUV or Bureau Veritas (I invite you to read their document on EN 71). All of these companies have an office in China and can test some samples of the product before you have paid the balance of your payment and the goods are shipped to Italy (when it would be too late to get reimbursed, repaired or remanufactured the goods).
What can happen to me if the products are found to be non-compliant?
When it comes to toys, there is not too much to negotiate with the authorities: if you were to import non-compliant toys and were to be discovered, you would risk seizure at customs, the withdrawal of the goods (if the discovery was made during the marketing phase of the toys) or arrest (in case someone were to get hurt).
Note that the Toy Safety Directive is updated very frequently. For example, new chemicals are often banned. This means that the information in this article is absolutely not enough if you are thinking of importing toys from China.
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