Regulation 58 Designation of United Kingdom designated test laboratories

Subject to the following provisions of this regulation, the Secretary of State may designate a laboratory as a United Kingdom test laboratory.

A designation under this regulation shall be in writing and shall be subject to such conditions as the Secretary of State may impose for the time being, and such conditions may include conditions which are to apply on or following the termination or expiry of the designation.

A designation under this regulation shall have effect in respect of such descriptions of applicable terminal equipment as the Secretary of State may for the time being authorise.

Subject to paragraph (5) below, in exercising the power conferred by paragraph (1) above, the Secretary of State may have regard to any matter appearing to him to be relevant, provided however that he shall not designate a laboratory as a United Kingdom test laboratory unless he is satisfied that it satisfies the relevant criteria.

Notwithstanding paragraph (4) above, the Secretary of State may, before 6th May 1994, designate a laboratory as a designated test laboratory if that laboratory is an approved testing laboratory without considering whether that laboratory satisfies the relevant criteria, provided however that the designation of such a laboratory shall lapse on that date if, before that date, such laboratory has not satisfied the Secretary of State that it satisfies the relevant criteria; and in this paragraph, “approved testing laboratory” means a laboratory which is an approved testing laboratory within the meaning of Article 2.8 of Council Directive 86/361/EEC and which is, on 6th November 1992, approved by the United Kingdom in the manner provided for in Article 7.2 of that Directive.

The Secretary of State may, for the purposes of satisfying himself that a test laboratory satisfies the relevant criteria, have regard to an assessment of that laboratory against such criteria by a United Kingdom notified body.

Subject to regulation 59 below, a designation under this regulation may be for—

Where the Commission informs the Secretary of State pursuant to Article 10.4 of the TTE Directive that, in the opinion of the Committee referred to in Article 13 thereof, changes are necessary in the conditions to which a designation of a United Kingdom designated test laboratory is subject or in the authorised descriptions of applicable terminal equipment in respect of which the designation has effect if that laboratory is to retain its recognised status, the Secretary of State shall vary the conditions or authorised descriptions, as the case may require, to give effect to such changes.

Nothing in these Regulations shall require a United Kingdom designated test laboratory to carry out any test or assessment upon request from a manufacturer of applicable terminal equipment or a notified body; and it is hereby declared for the avoidance of doubt that where a United Kingdom designated test laboratory carries out any test or assessment, it may charge such fees (which may include an amount on account of profit) as it may determine.

In this regulation and regulation 59 below, “relevant criteria” means the criteria fixed by the appropriate parts of standards which are relevant harmonized standards for the designation of such laboratories for the purposes of Article 10.2 of the TTE Directive.