Survey Shows 60% of Electricians Encounter Non-compliant Products

NAPIT is convinced that ‘Does it Comply’ will help its members to find out about non-compliant and counterfeit products and provide a means of reporting any problems in this area that they come across. 

The organisation also believes that there are close synergies, bearing in mind that it has conducted a recent survey among its members about fake and non-compliant products.

Commented Frank Bertie (NAPIT Group’s Technical Director & Trade Association Chairman): “NAPIT is delighted to be involved in ‘Does It Comply?’ as it will be invaluable to our members to find out about non-compliant and counterfeit products and a means of reporting any problems in this area that they come across.”

NAPIT’s survey about non-compliant and counterfeit products poses questions ranging from how often the respondents come across products that they feel would not comply with current standards, how significant they feel that the problem of counterfeit and non-compliant products is, whether they have the knowledge to detect such products, whether they would like further guidance on the topic, and whether they would support a drive to collect and show images of such non-compliant products to help raise awareness.

This survey also sought to find out whether respondents had reported any non-compliant or counterfeit products, and what they considered the main barrier that stopped them reporting the issue (if any) to be. Another question was, respondents had encountered such products, had this affected their work in any way – such as inconvenience or safety problems? 

The final question asked the respondents to indicate how important having on online reporting facility would be to them in terms of their safety at work and job satisfaction.

The results

NAPIT’s survey received 241 responses, which – thought Frank Bertie – “is a fair reflection of our typical response rate.”

The findings were as follows:

• Nearly half (49%) of respondents find more than five electrical products a year, which they feel would fail to comply with current product standards (only 7% said they found no such products)
• 45% of electrical installers are unsure whether they have the necessary knowledge to identify counterfeit electrical goods in most cases
• Nearly all (95%) of the respondents would like to received further guidance on how to identify counterfeit/non-compliant electrical products
• Over 90% would support drive to collect images of poorly manufactured and counterfeit electrical products
• Nearly 60% said they have encountered non-compliant electrical products but have not reported them and of these, nearly half (45%) said that it was because they didn’t know where to report it to
• 87% said they would use an online system to report counterfeit or substandard or otherwise non-compliant products
• 53% said they caused an inconvenience and 25% said they have caused a direct safety risk to customers.

These are important findings, bearing in mind the current and increasing prevalence of counterfeit, substandard and non-compliant products finding their way into the UK marketplace. The figures also support NAPIT joining ‘Does it Comply?’ (http://www.doesitcomply.co.uk). 

NAPIT also provides a reporting form created for its members to report issues of this nature. The organisation uses this form to alert the EMS group of any suspicious goods so they can take appropriate action if they deem fit.

More about NAPIT

The National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers – also known as the NAPIT Trade Association – was formed in 1992 and seeks to enhance the success and excellence of its 10,000 strong membership, promote professionalism and encourage high standards within the electrical, engineering and building trades’ industries.

NAPIT exists to advance various trades (including electrical contractor and installer) members’ interests and give them a voice within their industry.

The organisation is one of the leading Government approved and United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) accredited membership scheme operators in the building services and fabric sector. 

There are currently more than 10,000 NAPIT registered installers in the electrical, heating, plumbing, ventilation, microgeneration and building fabric trades across the UK domestic, commercial and industrial markets. For more information, go to: https://www.napit.org.uk

• Oct 16, 2015

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