S.L. 427.40 Art. 6Obligations of importers.

(1) Importers shall only place toys that comply to these regulations on the local or Community market.

(2) Before placing a toy on the market, importers shall ensure that the appropriate conformity assessment procedure has been carried out by the manufacturer. They shall ensure that the manufacturer has drawn up the technical documentation, that the toy bears the required conformity marking and is accompanied by the required documents, and that the manufacturer has complied with the requirements set out in regulation 4.

(3) Where an importer considers or has reason to believe that a toy is not in conformity with the requirements set out in regulation 9 and Schedule I, it shall not place the toy on the market until the toy has been brought into conformity. Furthermore, where the toy presents a risk, the importer shall inform the manufacturer and the Market Surveillance Directorate to that effect.

(4) Importers shall indicate their name, registered trade name or registered trade mark and the address at which they can be contacted on the toy itself or, where that is not possible, on its packaging or in a document accompanying the toy.

(5) Importers shall ensure that the toy is accompanied by instructions and safety information. All information accompanying the toy and on the toy itself must be in, at least, the English or Maltese language.

(6) Importers shall ensure that, while a toy is under their responsibility, storage or transport conditions do not jeopardise its compliance with the requirements set out in regulation 9 and Schedule I.

(7) When deemed appropriate with regard to the risks presented by a toy, importers shall, to protect the health and safety of consumers, carry out sample testing of marketed toys, investigate and keep a register of complaints, of non-conforming toys and toy recalls, and shall keep distributors informed of any such monitoring. They shall keep such register at the disposal of the Market Surveillance Directorate.

(8) Importers who consider or have reason to believe that a toy which they have placed on the market is not in conformity with the relevant Community harmonisation legislation shall immediately take the corrective measures necessary to bring that toy into conformity, to withdraw it or recall it, if appropriate. Furthermore, where the toy presents a risk, manufacturers shall immediately inform the Market Surveillance Directorate giving details, in particular, of the non-compliance and of any corrective measures taken.

(9) Importers shall, for a period of ten years after the toy has been placed on the market, keep a copy of the EC declaration of conformity at the disposal of the Market Surveillance Directorate and ensure that the technical documentation can be made available to the Directorate upon request.

(10) Importers shall, further to a reasoned request from the Market Surveillance Directorate, provide that Directorate with all the information and documentation necessary to demonstrate the conformity of the toy, in the English or Maltese language. They shall cooperate with that Directorate, at its request, as regards any action taken to eliminate the risks posed by toys which they have placed on the market.

(11) An importer shall be considered as a manufacturer for the purposes of these regulations and be subject to the obligations of the manufacturer under regulation 4 when it places a toy on the market under its name or trademark or modifies a toy already placed on the market in such a way that compliance with the applicable requirements may be affected.