Hot Spot - Guidance on Placing CE Marked PED Stock on the GB Market

What is it?
Following the announcement by the UK government that increased the implementation period for UKCA marked goods in the pressure equipment market to 31st December 2022 (ref BV002409), several government guidance documents have now been updated. This Hot Spot is issued to alert members to the revised requirements.
The updated Placing manufactured goods on the market in Great Britain - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) document contains further clarification on the position of finished stock that is ready to be placed on the market. The guidance for existing stock states that:

If your good was fully manufactured, CE marked and ready to place on the market before 1 January 2021, you do not need to use the UKCA marking even if the certification was carried out by a UK-based body. These goods will only be able to be placed on the GB market and only until 31st December 2022. From 1 January 2023, you will need to use the UKCA marking.
This means that CE marked stock that had finished manufacture before 1st January 2021 can only be placed on the GB market until 31st December 2022.

Why is it Important?
This is an important clarification because previously it was assumed that if fully manufactured CE marked stock was ready to be first placed on the GB market prior to 1st January 2021 it could be actually sold at any time afterwards. The guidance now confirms that CE marked stock that has completed manufacture cannot be placed on the market in GB after 31st December 2022, regardless of whether it was manufactured before 1st January 2021.

All CE marked stock may be first placed on the market in the EU if CE marked by an EU Notified Body, where applicable. Consequently, members are advised to ensure that they have placed any products bearing a CE mark, using a UK Notified Body on the GB market before 31st December 2022.

All CE marked goods placed on the GB market before 31st December 2022 can continue to circulate until they reach the end user, therefore products sold on by the manufacturer in the GB distribution chain are not affected by this clarification.
To clarify the terminology, the PED (Article 2, Definitions) states:

(15) ‘making available on the market’ means any supply of pressure equipment or assemblies for distribution or use on the Union market in the course of a commercial activity, whether in return for payment or free of charge;

(16) ‘placing on the market’ means the first making available of pressure equipment or assemblies on the Union market;
The Blue Guide relating to the PER for the GB market states:

When a manufacturer or an importer supplies a product to a distributor or an end-user for the first time, the operation is always labelled in legal terms as ‘placing on the market’.

Placing a product on the market requires an offer or an agreement (written or verbal) between two or more legal or natural persons for the transfer of ownership, possession or BV002441 7/10/2021 any other property right concerning the product in question after the stage of manufacture has taken place. … It does not require the physical handover of the product.

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