Construction Products Regulation (CPR)

EU Requirements: Regulation (EU) 305/2011, being the EU’s Construction Products Regulation (CPR) regulates the use and sale of construction products in the EU.

It is your responsibility to comply with both EU construction products requirements if you sell on Amazon EU website(s).

Please see below for further information about EU requirements.

UK Requirements: Until the end of the Brexit transition period (December 31, 2020), the CPR regulates the use and sale of construction products in the UK.

After the end of the Brexit transition period (December 31, 2020), the Construction Products (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/465) will apply to construction products.

Both regimes attempt to protect the health and safety of workers using construction products and of users of construction works, including recycling and/or reuse requirements of parts or materials. The requirements include safety objectives for the design and manufacture of construction products, labelling requirements, and the applicable conformity assessment procedures. They also set out the obligations of manufacturers, importers, and distributors.

If you manufacture, import or distribute construction products, you will need to comply with the requirements of both regimes. Different rules apply to goods you sell in:

1. Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales); and
2. Northern Ireland

It is your responsibility to comply with both UK and EU construction products requirements if you sell on Amazon EU website(s) in addition to the UK site following the end of the Brexit transition period.

Please see below for further information about UK requirements.

We encourage you to consult your legal counsel for any concerns about the laws and regulations concerning your product. This material only reflects the position at the date of writing and requirements across the EU and/or in the UK may change – particularly in light of the developing position with Brexit. You should refer to current UK Brexit guidance about your products (see below) to learn more about changes that may affect you following the end of the transition period.

What products does the EU regime apply to?

The CPR applies to construction products sold in the EU, which means any product or kit produced and offered for sale in the EU to be incorporated, in a permanent manner, in construction works or parts of construction work. The performance of a construction product will have an effect on the performance of the construction works.

Examples of construction products covered by the CPR are cement, windows, screed, tiles, bricks, or door hardware.

Who has obligations under the EU regime?

The CPR sets out obligations for manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers and distributors of construction products.

• You are a manufacturer if you manufacture construction products yourself, or have construction products designed and manufactured, and sell it under your name or trademark.
• You are an authorised representative if a manufacturer has given you a written mandate to act on their behalf in relation to specific tasks.
• You are an importer if you are established in the EU and you offer construction products for sale or supply from outside the EU into the EU.
• You are a distributor (not a manufacturer or importer) if you make construction products available for sale or supply.

What are the key requirements of the EU regime?

Manufacturer responsibilities include the following:

• Draw up the Declaration of Performance
• Affix the CE marking
• This marking must be followed by:
  • The last two digits of the year in which it was first affixed
  • The name and the registered address of the manufacturer, or the identifying mark allowing identification of the name and address of the manufacturer easily
  • The unique identification code of the product-type
  • The reference number of the declaration of performance
  • The level or class of the performance declared
  • The reference to the harmonized technical specification applied
  • The identification number of the notified body, if applicable
  • The suggested intended use in the harmonized technical specification applied
• Draw up required technical documentation. Manufacturers must keep a copy of the technical documentation and declaration of performance for 10 years after the construction product has been offered for sale or supply in the EU.
• Ensure the procedural efficiency of series production to secure the declared performance.

Importer responsibilities include ensuring the following:

• Manufacturer has carried out the performance consistency assessment and verification.
• Manufacturer has drawn up the technical documentation.
• Manufacturer has drawn up the Declaration of Performance.
• While a construction product is under their responsibility, its storage or transport conditions do not jeopardize its compliance with the essential requirements.
• Importers must keep a copy of the technical documentation and declaration of performance for 10 years after the construction product has been offered for sale or supply in the EU.

Distributor responsibilities include ensuring the following:

• To act with due care in relation to the CPR requirements
• While a construction product is under their responsibility, its storage or transport conditions do not jeopardize its compliance with the essential requirements.

What are the labelling and information requirements?

Manufacturers must ensure that construction products bear:

• A type, batch or serial number, or any other element allowing their identification
• Their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted
• required CE marking

Importers must ensure that construction products bear:

• A type, batch or serial number, or any other element allowing their identification
• Their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted, and the corresponding details for the manufacturer
• required CE marking

Distributors must:

• Verify that the construction product bears the CE.
• Verify that the construction product is accompanied by the required documents, instructions, and safety information in the language determined by the Member State(s) where is to be sold and understood by users.
• Ensure that the manufacturer and importer have complied with the requirement to indicate their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted on the construction product. In case it is not possible, the indications should be available on the packaging.

In addition, a construction product should accompany usage and safety instructions in a user-friendly language catering to the end-users along with authorities.

What should you do if construction products are not in conformity with the EU regimes?

Distributors should not make a construction product available for sale if they find potential non-conformity with requirements of the CPR. If the construction product presents a risk, distributors must inform the manufacturer or the importer to that effect as well as the authorities.

Manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring construction products into conformity, to withdraw or to recall it, as appropriate.

When the construction product presents a risk, manufacturers, importers and distributors should immediately inform the competent national authorities of the Member States where it was sold, along with details of the non-conformity and of any corrective measures taken.

Manufacturers, importers and distributors should provide a competent national authority with all the information and documentation, in paper or electronic form, necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the construction product with the CPR, following a reasoned request. They must also cooperate with competent authorities at their request on action taken to eliminate risks relating to those products.

Additional information

We strongly encourage you to visit the European Commission’s website for more information on the EU construction products requirements:

• https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/construction/product-regulation_en
• https://ec.europa.eu/growth/sectors/construction/product-regulation/faq_en

What products do the UK regimes apply to?

The regimes apply to construction products sold in the UK, which mean any product or kit produced and offered for sale in the UK to be incorporated, in a permanent manner, in construction works or parts of construction work. The performance of a construction product will have an effect on the performance of the construction works. The provisions apply differently to Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales, GB) and Northern Ireland. You can read more about the position in Northern Ireland (NI) below.

Examples of construction products covered by the regimes are: cement, windows, screed, tiles, bricks, or door hardware.

Who has obligations under the UK regime?

The regimes set out obligations for manufacturers, authorised representatives, importers and distributors of construction products.

• You are a manufacturer if you manufacture construction products yourself, or have construction products designed and manufactured, and sell it under your name or trademark.
• You are an authorised representative if a manufacturer has given you a written mandate to act on their behalf in relation to specific tasks (and, after December 31, 2020, you are established in GB).
• You are an importer if you are established in the EU (or, after December 31, 2020, you are established in GB) and you offer construction products for sale or supply from outside the EU into the EU (or, after December 31, 2020, into the GB from outside of the UK). For details of importing into NI, see the Northern Ireland section below.
• You are a distributor (not a manufacturer or importer) if you make construction products available for sale or supply.

What are the key requirements of the UK regime?

Manufacturer responsibilities include the following:

• Draw up the Declaration of Performance
• Affix the CE marking, or after the transition period, for products sold in GB, the UKCA marking using a UK recognized approved body. For products sold in NI while the Northern Ireland Protocol remains in force, the CE marking should be affixed (see “Northern Ireland” section below).
• This marking must be followed by:
  • the last two digits of the year in which it was first affixed
  • the name and the registered address of the manufacturer, or the identifying mark allowing identification of the name and address of the manufacturer easily
  • the unique identification code of the product-type
  • the reference number of the declaration of performance
  • the level or class of the performance declared
  • the reference to the designated technical specification applied
  • the identification number of the notified body, if applicable
  • the suggested intended use in the designated technical specification applied
• Draw up required technical documentation. Manufacturers must keep a copy of the technical documentation and declaration of performance for 10 years after the construction product has been offered for sale or supply.
• Ensure the procedural efficiency of series production to secure the declared performance.

Importer responsibilities include ensuring the following:

• Manufacturer has carried out the performance consistency assessment and verification.
• Manufacturer has drawn up the technical documentation.
• Manufacturer has drawn up the Declaration of Performance.

• While a construction product is under their responsibility, its storage or transport conditions do not jeopardize its compliance with the essential requirements.
• Importers must keep a copy of the technical documentation and declaration of performance for 10 years after the construction product has been offered for sale or supply.

Distributor responsibilities include ensuring the following:

• To act with due care in relation to the applicable requirements
• While a construction product is under their responsibility, its storage or transport conditions do not jeopardize its compliance with the essential requirements.

What are the labelling and information requirements?

Manufacturers must ensure that construction products bear:

• A type, batch or serial number, or any other element allowing their identification
• Their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted
• required CE or UK marking

Importers must ensure that construction products bear:

• A type, batch or serial number, or any other element allowing their identification
• Their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted, and the corresponding details for the manufacturer
• required CE or UK marking

The UK Government has released guidance on alternative means of providing GB importer traceability information until December 31, 2022. See the BREXIT: UK Government Guidance section below for links to this guidance.

Distributors must:

• Verify that the construction product bears the CE or UK marking.
• Verify that the construction product is accompanied by the required documents, instructions, and safety information in English.
• Ensure that the manufacturer and importer have complied with the requirement to indicate their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark, and the postal address at which they can be contacted on the construction product. In case it is not possible, the indications should be available on the packaging.

In addition, a construction product should accompany usage and safety instructions in a user-friendly language catering to the end-users along with authorities.

Northern Ireland

Please note that different rules will apply in NI from January 1, 2021 as a result of the Northern Ireland Protocol. In particular:

• You should ensure that products meet EU requirements and that you use the CE mark.
• You are an importer if you are established in the EU or NI and you sell products from a country outside of the EU and Northern Ireland (including from GB) into NI. Products sold in NI should be marked with details of any EU / NI based importer.
• Authorised representatives can be based in NI or the EU. From July 16, 2021, new rules come into force under EU Regulation 2019/1020 and some businesses may need to appoint a responsible person in the EU or NI to carry out compliance functions (if there is no other entity in the supply chain who is able to carry out the functions). Further guidance on the new rules will be made available by the UK Government.
• If you are using a UK body to carry out mandatory third-party conformity assessment, you will need to apply a UKNI marking as well as a CE mark to products placed in NI from January 1, 2021. Goods with the CE and UKNI marking cannot be sold in the EU. You do not need to use the UKNI marking if you self-certify compliance or use an EU body to carry out a mandatory third-party assessment.
• “Qualifying Northern Ireland goods” will be able to be sold in GB with the CE mark. The UK Government is issuing guidance on how this will work.

What should you do if construction products are not in conformity with the UK regime?

Distributors should not make a construction product available for sale if they find potential non-conformity with requirements of the regimes. If the construction product presents a risk, distributors must inform the manufacturer or the importer to that effect as well as the authorities.

Manufacturers, importers, and distributors should immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring construction products into conformity, to withdraw or to recall it, as appropriate.

When the construction product presents a risk, manufacturers, importers and distributors should immediately inform the competent UK authority where it was sold, along with details of the non-conformity and of any corrective measures taken.

Manufacturers, importers and distributors should provide a competent UK authority with all the information and documentation, in paper or electronic form, necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the construction product with the regulatory regimes, following a reasoned request. They must also cooperate with competent authorities at their request on action taken to eliminate risks relating to those products.

BREXIT: UK Government Guidance

The UK Government has released guidance on selling construction products in GB and NI after Brexit. The published guidance provides information for those supplying construction products in GB regarding compliance requirements from January 1, 2021, including on:

• designated standards
• transitional provisions
• UK ‘approved bodies’
• actions for businesses and other stakeholders

We encourage you to review this guidance (linked below), alongside any other specific UK Government guidance that applies to your product. You should consult your legal counsel if you have questions about how the laws and regulations apply to your products from January 1, 2021.

Additional information

We strongly encourage you to visit the below UK Government websites for more information on the UK construction products requirements:

• https://www.gov.uk/topic/planning-development/building-regulations
• https://www.gov.uk/guidance/eu-construction-products-regulation-and-ce-marking-including-uk-product-contact-point-for-construction-products#uk-product-contact-point

The Brexit guidance referred to above can be found here:

• https://www.gov.uk/guidance/construction-products-regulation-from-1-january-2021#construction-products-regulation-from-1-january-2021
• https://www.gov.uk/guidance/construction-products-regulation-in-northern-ireland-from-1-january-2021

We also encourage you to visit the Business Companion website, which contains further guidance on UK product compliance rules:

• https://www.businesscompanion.info/en/get-started
• en/quick-guides/product-safety/construction-products