FAQs about the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance in Austria - Interseroh Austria
Please find here the answers of the most frequent questions concerning the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance in Austria.
1. Who does the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance apply to?
The law groups the "obligated parties" under the term of "manufacturers". Manufacturers in terms of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance are whoever:
- manufactures and sells electrical and electronic equipment under their brand name (manufacturers)
- resells electrical and electronic equipment under their brand name – except if the brand name of the manufacturer according to a) is marked on the appliance (retailers, distributors, companies placing equipment on the market)
- imports electrical and electronic equipment to Austria commercially (importers)
- exports electrical and electronic equipment commercially for delivery to final consumers (exporters).
All obligated parties are to ensure the take-back and treatment/recycling of the electrical and electronic equipment they have distributed in conformity with the ordinance.
2. What obligations do I have as manufacturer?
The manufacturers have a number of obligations to fulfil. We have summarised the main obligations from the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance for you:
- Compliance with the substance prohibitions (§ 4)
- One-to-one take-back if you as manufacturer are also retailer or distributor and your sales area is larger than 150 m² (§ 5)
- Establishment and operation of collection points – at least one per political district (§ 5)
- Take-back of the electrical and electronic equipment at the collection points of the municipalities and the collection points established per political district (§ 7)
- Payment of a financial security for electrical and electronic equipment for private households as of 13 August 2005 (§ 8)
- Compliance with reuse and treatment of the electrical and electronic equipment taken back and the necessary documentation of these processes (§ 11)
- Marking of the electrical and electronic equipment placed on the market as of 13 August 2005 (§ 12)
- Information for final consumers on the sense and purpose of separate collection, on the return and collection possibilities, etc. (§ 13)
- Information for the proprietors of treatment plants on components, materials, etc. (§ 14)
- Registration with the Federal Environment Agency (§ 21)
- Reporting of the volumes placed on the market per equipment category (§ 23)
3. What is electrical and electronic equipment by definition?
An appliance is electrical or electronic equipment if for proper use:
- it needs electrical current or electromagnetic fields and
- it is designed for operation with max. 1000 Volt alternating current or 1500 Volt direct current and
- it falls in the equipment categories named in Annex 1 of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance and
- is not part of another type of equipment.
Equipment intended specifically for military purposes is excluded from the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance.
For bulbs, only the substance prohibitions according to § 4, par. 1 and 2 of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance need to be complied with.
4. How is the equipment classified?
- "An appliance is electrical or electronic equipment if for proper use it needs electrical current or electromagnetic fields."
Electricity is needed as primary source of energy for the appliance to fulfil its proper purpose (main function). The appliance can no longer fulfil its main purpose if current does not flow. If electrical energy is only needed for auxiliary or check functions, the appliance does not fall under the scope of the ordinance.
Examples of appliances that are not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance:- Teddy bear with voice function: the teddy bear also fulfils its main function (cuddly toy) without voice function.
- Safe with electronic lock: the main function of the safe is safe storage and protection against theft and fire. When there is no electrical energy available to open the electronic lock, the main function – protection against theft and fire – remains intact.
- Gas cooker with electrical igniter: whether the gas is lit with the integrated electrical igniter or with a match has no influence on the main function as gas cooker.
- "An appliance is electrical or electronic equipment if for proper use it is designed for operation with max. 1000 Volt alternating current or 1500 Volt direct current."
If the appliance exceeds the named voltage specifications it is not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance.
Examples of appliances that are not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance:- heavy current switching unit
- lighter with Piezo ignition
- electric pasture fences
- "An appliance is electrical or electronic equipment if it falls in the equipment categories named in Annex 1 of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance."
If an appliance cannot be classified in one of the equipment categories according to Annex 1 of the ordinance, it is not subject to the ordinance.
Examples of appliances that are not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance:- Large-scale stationary, industrial and commercial tools. They include combined appliances and systems, in which every single one of these appliances or systems (equipment parts), firstly, were produced only for commercial use and fastened permanently and erected stationary by a specialist company, and, secondly, serve a specific purpose in an industrial or commercial plant or in an industrial or commercial building. Examples: conveyor belt, crane, etc.
- Implanted or infected products – for example, cardiac pacemakers
- "An appliance is electrical or electronic equipment if it is not part of another type of equipment."
The appliance may not be part of equipment that is not covered by the scope of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance. These appliances are seen as independent appliances with a directly usable function. Such appliances and systems or combinations are not intended for placing on the market as individual sales unit, are erected by specialist or craftsman companies and serve a specific purpose.
Examples of appliances that are not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance: - lift
- escalator
- heating installatio
- light switch
An independent appliance, by contrast, is every unit of an appliance with a directly usable function (specified by the manufacturer for the user in the user instructions). These appliances have their own connections that can be used by the user or anyone else directly (without further complicated adaptations or connections). - Appliances that are already subject to special regulations are also not subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance, e.g. end-of-life vehicles.
Classification list of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management
To enable manufacturers and systems to perform a standard classification of appliances regarding the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance (appliance for private use or appliance for commercial purposes), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management has drawn up a classification list. This list contains numerous concrete types of appliances. The list is supplemented and updated by the ministry continuously. Apart from the classification as "private" or "commercial", this list also shows whether an appliance is subject to the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance or not and the classification of the collection and treatment category.
5. What are appliances for private households?
The Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance distinguishes between electrical and electronic appliances for private households and electrical and electronic appliances for commercial purposes.
Electrical and electronic appliances for private households are appliances that are intended for private households:
- appliances for commerce, industry, administration and other sectors that due to their type and number are comparable to appliances for private households
- appliances that at the time they are placed on the market are comparable with old electrical and electronic appliances from private households with regards to their possible occurrence as waste (dual-use appliances).
Since dual-use appliances are classified as appliances for private use, the overwhelming part of old electrical and electronic appliances is to be classified as household appliances.
6. What are appliances for commercial purposes?
Electrical and electronic appliances for commercial purposes are all appliances that do not belong to the group of appliances for private households. They are to be taken back differently depending on the date they were placed on the market:
- one-to-one (1:1 take-back) if they were placed on the market before 13 August 2005
- free-of-charge if they were placed on the market after 12 August 2005
Individual solutions are possible
Manufacturers may also reach individual agreements on return/take-back with commercial users of electrical and electronic appliances.
Interseroh Austria also offers individual collection and treatment solutions for appliances with a commercial purpose. The actual number of appliances passed on for treatment and recycling is used as basis for these solutions. The costs are then borne not in the course of dispensation, but only in the course of actual collection and treatment.
The transfer of obligations from the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance to a system (dispensation) is very convenient for manufacturers, but the individual organisation of collection and treatment can also offer advantages:
- Manufacturers can use the possibility of reaching individual agreements with customers regarding financing and collection (for example: inclusion of certain provisions in general terms of business).
- Manufacturers can deliver commercial electrical and electronic appliances to their customers without financial mark-up for collection and treatment.
- The individual solutions make it easier for manufacturers to achieve certain intentions when necessary (for example: return of certain components, value-preserving dismantling, etc.).
- The costs are calculated from the actual collection and recycling costs or sales revenues from the old electrical and electronic appliances taken back because commercial appliances are so heterogeneous that reliable estimations on return are not possible without concrete data collection.
7. What collection and treatment categories are there in the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance?
The 10 equipment categories in Annex 1 of the Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance are consolidated in Annex 3 of the ordinance to five collection and treatment categories:
- large appliances (largest edge length > 50 cm)
- refrigerators and freezers
- video display units including cathode ray tube devices
- small electrical and electronic appliances (largest edge length < 50 cm)
- gas discharge lamps
8. Are there marking requirements for old electrical and electronic appliances?
Manufacturers have to mark electrical and electronic appliances placed on the market as of 12 August 2005 with the symbol of a crossed-out dustbin as "symbol for separate collection".
This symbol is to be attached visibly, recognisably and permanently. In the case of certain appliances (for example: medical appliances or appliances where marking is not possible or permitted for legal reasons or space reasons), the symbol may be marked on the packaging, user instructions or similar.
You can find the symbol for separate collection as download at the web site of the environment ministry.
9. How do I register with and report to the Federal Environment Agency?
The Old Electrical Equipment Ordinance (§ 21) provides for registration by manufacturers in the EDM portal of the Federal Environment Agency. The following information is necessary for registration:
- name, address
- commercial register number
- collection and treatment category
- branch classification
- contact addresses, e-mail addresses
- information on private or commercial use
- naming of the collection system
- distance selling in other EU countries
Interseroh Austria offers to take over the registration work for its partners. The partners disclose the necessary information to Interseroh Austria in the master date sheet, an annex to the partner contract.
After registration the Federal Environment Ministry sends the partner his individual "system and personal data" for access to the electronic register. To finish registration, the partner must log into the EDM portal with his access data and also name the collection and recycling system he participates in.
10. How do I report to the system (Interseroh Austria online report)?
Interseroh Austria takes over the reporting duties of companies that place electrical and electronic appliances on the market to the EDM portal of the Federal Environment Agency for its partners. To be able to fulfil these obligations, Interseroh Austria must be informed of the respective quantities placed on the market.
At Interseroh Austria the annual preview report forms the basis for a rough determination of the dispensation fee and for the classification of the partner as monthly, quarterly or yearly reporter. The classification depends on the annual fee:
Annual reporting:
Annual fee < € 2,000.00
Quarterly reporting:
Annual fee € 2,000.00 to € 20,000.00
Monthly reporting:
Annual fee > € 20,000.00
Determination of volume
The company placing appliances on the market must determine the quantity placed on the market per collection and treatment category and inform Interseroh Austria of it. Accessories for the basic equipment of an appliance must according to the environment ministry be considered as volume placed on the market and reported with the appliance.
Accessories are to be seen as those parts that are necessary to fulfil the specified basic technical function and which can be connected physically to the appliance. The following in particular are to be seen as accessories:
- accessories with electrical or electronic components (for example:
cables, memory cards, etc.) - accessories without electrical or electronic components (for example:
vacuum cleaner hoses or nozzle attachments) - batteries that are placed on the market with an appliance as basic equipment.
Packaging and enclosed documents, for example user instructions, warranty declarations, etc., are not to be taken into account in the determination of volume.
Simplified determination of volume
Interseroh Austria also accepts simplified methods (accepted by the environment ministry) of determining volumes (e.g. product groups or random sample method).
Interseroh Austria online report
Interseroh Austria offers an online report with maximum legal certainty and transmission security. The procedure is performed with a system comparable to that used for online banking. To use the convenient and simplified reporting method via the Internet, Interseroh Austria sends the system partners an access code by e-mail. Signature cards, card readers or other devices are not necessary.
11. Where can private final consumers give back their old electrical and electronic appliances?
The private final consumer has numerous possibilities of giving his old electrical or electronic appliance back:
- at municipal collection points
- at the collection points of the manufacturers and operators of collection and
- recycling systems (at least one point per political district)
- one-to-one take-back at the final distributor (applies to old electrical or electronic appliances of equivalent type and function)
12. Where can retailers or distributors of the returned old electrical and electronic appliances give them back?
Retailers and distributors can return the old electrical and electronic appliances they have taken back to the collection points established by the system operators (at least one point per political district).
Interseroh Austria has agreements with more than 100 such collection points. Further, we offer our partners who are affected by the one-to-one take-back obligation to fetch the appliances they have taken back from their premises.
13. Are there exceptions to the one-to-one take-back obligation?
The one-to-one take-back obligation means that retailers and distributors are obligated on demand by the final consumer to take back an old electrical or electronic appliance free of charge when selling a new electrical or electronic appliance to private households if the old appliance is equivalent in type and function to the new appliance.
Excepted from the obligation for one-to-one take-back are undertakings with a sales area (area freely accessible to customers) of less than 150 m². In this case information clearly visible to the customer must be put up.
