Council Directive of 19 February 1973 on the harmonization of the laws of Member States relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits (73/23/EEC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Article 100 thereof;

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission;

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament;

Having regard to the Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee;

1. Whereas the provisions in force in the Member States designed to ensure safety in the use of electrical equipment used within certain voltage limits may differ, thus impeding trade;

2. Whereas in certain Member States in respect of certain electrical equipment, the safety legislation takes the form of preventive and repressive measures by means of binding provisions;

3. Whereas in other Member States in order to achieve the same objective, the safety legislation provides for reference to technical standards laid down by Standards Bodies; whereas such a system offers the advantage of rapid adjustment to technical progress without neglecting safety requirements;

4. Whereas certain Member States carry out administrative operations to approve standards; whereas such approval neither affects the technical content of the standards in any way nor limits their conditions of use; whereas such approval cannot therefore alter the effects, from a Community point of view, of harmonized and published standards;

5. Whereas within the Community the free movement of electrical equipment should follow when this equipment complies with certain safety requirements recognized in all Member States; whereas without prejudice to any other form of proof, the proof of compliance with these requirements may be established by reference to harmonized standards which incorporate these conditions; whereas these harmonized standards should be established by common agreement by bodies to be notified by each Member State to the other Member States and to the Commission and should be publicized as widely as possible; whereas such harmonization should for the purposes of trade eliminate the inconveniences, resulting from differences between national standards;

6. Whereas, without prejudice to any other form of proof, the compliance of electrical equipment with the harmonized standards may be presumed from the affixing or issue of marks or certificates by the competent organizations or, in the absence thereof, from a manufacturer's declaration of compliance; whereas in order to facilitate the removal of barriers to trade the Member States should recognize such marks or certificates or such declaration as elements of proof; whereas, with this end in view, the said marks or certificates should be publicized in particular by their publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities;

7. Whereas as a transitional measure, the free movement of electrical equipment for which harmonized standards do not yet exist may be achieved by applying the safety provisions or standards already laid down by other international bodies or by one of the bodies which establish harmonized standards;

8. Whereas it is possible that electrical equipment may be placed in free circulation even though it does not comply with the safety requirements, and whereas it is therefore desirable to lay down suitable provisions to minimize this danger;

9. Whereas Decision 90/683/EEC^(*) establishes the modules for the various phases of the conformity assessment procedures which are intended to be used in the technical harmonization Directives;

10. Whereas the choice of procedures must not lead to a lowering of safety standards of electrical equipment, which have already been established throughout the Community,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE: