The next 2020, February 1st, except for last-minute agreements, will mark an important demarcation line for the world of both voluntary and mandatory certification. Although it has long been announced, the brexit effect on companies, citizens and the public administration on a global level has been widely underestimated. Effects that can put into crisis, even blocking, procurement, contracts, distribution and sale of products with obvious risks of civil responsibility, but not only, for the people whom will assume the responsibility to control and / or accept certifications that may not be more valid from a legal point of view and therefore no longer acceptable within the European Union.
The “Conformity Assessment Bodies” pursuant to EU Regulation No. 765/2008 are the “authorized” subjects or directly by the Member State (notification) or by the National Accreditation Body (accreditation) when it exists and is given to it “delegation” for the assessment of compliance with voluntary or mandatory technical standards (community harmonization legislation) of products (eg CE, biological, etc.), processes (eg FPC for concrete, etc.) and management systems ( eg ISO 9001, ISO 14001, etc.). All this to guarantee quality, health and safety, respect for the environment, etc. not creating barriers to free circulation within the EU (hence harmonization) but with a strong protectionist effect for non-EU companies. DAkkS is the National Accreditation Body for Germany, cofrac is the French one and UKAS is the UK one for example.
From 202, February 1st, will not more valid all “certifications” and / or “CE declarations of conformity” issued by Bodies established in the United Kingdom as well as those issued by Bodies that have their registered office in a Member State of the EU but UKAS accredited. All this except for specific agreements on a possible transition period that has not yet been defined. The media have totally ignored this impact by limiting itself to bringing the attention of public opinion only to duties, visas and border controls but if we only think that the United Kingdom was among the first countries where the national accreditation system was born we understand how much the size of the problem may be important where UKAS accredited bodies, but not limited to them, are not communicating to their customers what will happen after 2020, January 31st, certainly causing a problem but probably also economic damages (products that can no longer to be more marketed or contracts at risk revoked).
Think of a heart valve (medical device) produced by a company (manufacturer) in the United Kingdom that can no longer affix the CE mark and then market it within the EU as well as the company of a Member State that will have delegated the evaluation of conformity to a Body based in the United Kingdom or a Member State but “accredited” by UKAS.
Likewise, a management system certification (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, etc.) will no longer be legally valid within the European Union if issued by a Body based in the United Kingdom or only UKAS accredited. We think of all the contracts, public and private, concluded or in the process of being defined.
Import / export, even among EU member countries, of products and services in every sector that will not respect the constraints defined at risk of sudden block. A sure growth of disputes between companies, between companies and public administration, between companies and conformity assessment bodies. And it’s just the beginning. © 2020, All Rights reserved.
Giuseppe Lepore
