Other Guides
The BTHA produces other guides for full BTHA members covering a range of other toy safety issues. These relate to requirements for the UK, EU, and the US.
BTHA Age Labelling of Toys Guide
The BTHA has produced guidance outlining the common issues encountered when making age recommendations for toys. The guidance uses examples taken from EN71-1 as these are the most commonly encountered issues, but the principles apply to other toy standards which also contain age-based safety warnings.
BTHA Age Labelling of Toys Guide
BTHA Food Imitations Guide
The UK Food Imitations (Safety) Regulations 1989 outline the requirements that all companies must meet when placing non-food items that look like food on the UK market. The guide has been developed with the British Retail Consortium, the BTHA Toy Retailer Safety Forum, and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute.
BTHA Food Imitations Guide
BTHA Grey Area Product Decisions (Toy or Non-Toy) Guide
The BTHA’s Grey Area guide has been updated to reflect the fact that the UK is no longer part of the EU.
The BTHA’s Primary Authority, Milton Keynes has assured this guidance as Primary Authority Advice.
Any proposed enforcement action in the UK against any of the BTHA members within the ‘regulatory group’ that is inconsistent with this BTHA Primary Authority assured advice, will be ‘directed against’. This means that Milton Keynes Primary Authority may direct an enforcing authority not to take proposed enforcement action (thereby blocking the enforcement action) where such action is inconsistent with primary authority advice.
BTHA Grey Area Products Guide - Toys Vs Non Toys
The Toy Gun Code
The law on toy guns changed in 2007 with the introduction of the Violent Crime Reduction Act to ensure toy guns could not be accidentally mistaken for real or replica guns.
The BTHA, alongside other toy associations, worked with the police to ensure toy guns, such as water pistols, are brightly coloured to avoid confusion with real or replica guns.
The only exception is toy guns that look like those produced before 1870 such as pirate or cowboy ‘guns’.
Toy Gun Code
US Federal Requirements For Toys
In the United States, there is toy safety legislation made at the federal level which applies to the whole of the US, and those made at the individual state level. Toy companies selling into the US need to consider both. The BTHA guide covers the federal requirements for toys intended for use in play by children under 14 years of age.
USA Federal requirements for toys
Toy Industries of Europe Age Determination Guide
Since the withdrawal of the CEN report 14379 on age classification, there has been some debate about how the classification information should be replaced. To properly understand the documents there is first a need to understand the difference between age determination and age classification. This briefing explains the differences between various European guidelines.
General Product Safety Regulation – BTHA Fact Sheet
The EU GPSR has been updated and comes into force from 13th December 2024. The Regulation will apply immediately in all member states. The GPSR lays down essential rules on the safety of consumer products placed or made available
in the EU market with regards to human, physical and mental health. The new regulation aligns more closely with “new approach” legislation and this means many requirements already appear in the Toy Safety Directive.
In general most obligations for toys will still be covered by the Toy Safety Directive rather than the GPSR but members are advised to cross check requirements to ensure they are already covering all aspects. In particular there are some general requirements around recalls and the right to remedy for consumers. Also note that the Food Imitation Directive will be withdrawn and is now included within the GPSR.
The BTHA has produced a fact sheet giving a summary of the requirements so members can prepare see here.
General Product Safety Regulation – BTHA Fact Sheet
