Household cleaning tools and consumables

• Regulation (EU) 2023/988 — GPSR
• Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 — REACH
• Regulation (EU) No 528/2012 where antibacterial claims are made

Who has to appoint one

Sellers outside the Union placing cleaning tools and consumables on the EU market. The products are simple, but antibacterial claims on cloths and sponges move them into the biocidal treated articles regime.

Thresholds and exemptions

None. Treated articles claiming a biocidal property must use an approved active substance and carry specific labelling.

What must appear on the label

Manufacturer and responsible person details, batch identification, and for treated articles the name of the active substance, the biocidal property claimed and the relevant instructions and precautions.

Marketplace fields

Marketplaces enforce the responsible person and remove antibacterial claims that cannot be supported by an approved active substance.

Documentation you must hold

Technical documentation and risk analysis, REACH evidence for plastics and dyes, and for treated articles evidence that the active substance is approved for that product type and the labelling required by Article 58 of the biocides Regulation.

Standards and testing

REACH screening for restricted substances in plastics and handles, and for treated articles verification of the active substance and its approval status.

Language requirements

Warnings and any treated article information in the language of each member state of sale.

When it applies

Before the product is made available.

How long records are kept

Ten years.

What happens if you do not comply

Withdrawal and fines. Unsupported antibacterial claims are enforced as biocidal infringements rather than as marketing exaggeration.

Who enforces it

Market surveillance authorities and national biocides authorities.

Where the boundary lies

A cloth that is merely a cloth is a simple consumer product; a cloth claiming to kill bacteria is a treated article with an approved active substance, specific labelling and a documentation trail. The claim creates the obligation.

Questions we are asked

Can we say our sponge is antibacterial?

Only if it is treated with an approved active substance for that product type and carries the treated article labelling. Otherwise the claim is unlawful.

Do simple mops need a responsible person?

Yes. GPSR applies to every consumer product without a sectoral regime, however simple.