{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2008-264/introduction",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2008-264/introduction.json",
  "legislation": "eudn/2008/264",
  "legislation_title": "Commission Decision of 25 March 2008 on the fire safety requirements to be met by European standards for cigarettes pursuant to Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (Text with EEA relevance) (2008/264/EC)",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2008-264",
  "path": "introduction",
  "kind": "introduction",
  "number": null,
  "heading": "Introductory text",
  "text": "Commission Decision\nof 25 March 2008\non the fire safety requirements to be met by European standards for cigarettes pursuant to Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council\n(Text with EEA relevance)\n(2008/264/EC)\nTHE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,\nHaving regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,\nHaving regard to Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 December 2001 on general product safety, and in particular Article 4(1)(a),\nWhereas:\n(1)\nDirective 2001/95/EC provides that European standards should be established by European standardisation bodies. Such standards should ensure that products satisfy the general safety requirement of the Directive.\n(2)\nAccording to Directive 2001/95/EC a product shall be presumed safe, as far as the risks and risk categories covered by relevant national standards are concerned, when it conforms to voluntary national standards transposing European standards.\n(3)\nCigarettes are inherently dangerous products since they produce heat and because they contain a burning material that keeps burning through the whole cigarette length when ignited. A risk associated with lit cigarettes, when laid carelessly down and left unattended, are fires with ensuing fatalities, injuries and material damage. Accidents of this kind have been observed and cause an estimated minimum of 1 000 fatalities in the Community every year.\n(4)\nTechnical solutions to prevent cigarettes from burning through the whole length when not actively puffed have been developed. Commercially available cigarettes contain bands of paper in the cigarette paper, about 6 mm wide and spaced by about 20 to 30 mm. Such ‘speed bumps’ make burning cigarettes self-extinguish, at least to a certain extent, by hindering oxygen access to the burn area. The reduced ignition propensity thus restricts the source and risk of fires.\n(5)\nThe safety requirement for cigarettes should be drawn up under the provisions of Article 4 of Directive 2001/95/EC, with the aim to request the standardisation bodies to develop a standard on reduced ignition propensity of cigarettes, according to the procedure laid down in Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations, and to allow the publication in the Official Journal of the European Union of the reference of the standard adopted. Standardisation bodies should give appropriate consideration to the ASTM E2187-04 standard.\n(6)\nOnce published in the Official Journal, cigarettes manufactured in compliance with the standard shall be presumed to conform to the general safety requirement of Directive 2001/95/EC on general product safety, as far as the fire safety requirement covered by the standard is concerned.\n(7)\nThe measure provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee set up under Directive 2001/95/EC,\nHAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:",
  "extent": "E+W+S+N.I.",
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f1",
      "text": "OJ L 11, 15.1.2002, p. 4."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f2",
      "text": "The ASPECT Consortium, Tobacco or Health in the European Union. Past, present and future, European Commission, 2004. (http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_determinants/life_style/Tobacco/Documents/tobacco_exs_en.pdf)."
    },
    {
      "type": "footnote",
      "label": "f3",
      "text": "OJ L 204, 21.7.1998, p. 37. Directive as last amended by Council Directive 2006/96/EC (OJ L 363, 20.12.2006, p. 81)."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudn/2008/264/introduction",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-11-01T15:17:01.742258+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}