One in five energy-using products across Europe do not match their energy efficiency claims, according to the Energy Saving Trust.

 

This follows findings from European Commission-funded research which revealed that up to 20 per cent are non-compliant with energy efficiency standards, such as energy labeling.

 

According to estimates, this is leading to around ten per cent of the potential energy savings stated being lost by millions of products across Europe, including ovens, fridges, washing machines, dishwashers, televisions and computers.

 

Now, the Energy Saving Trust will be independently purchasing and testing energy-using products across Europe to verify the energy saving claims made by manufacturers. This is part of a product surveillance programme, known as MarketWatch, to make sure consumers are getting the best deal through fully compliant energy-using products that match their energy saving claims in real-life situations.

 

The three year programme will carry out over 300 inspections in shops and 300 in online stores, checking a total of 25,000 products to see if they are properly labeled. To verify the true energy efficiency of products, 100 partial lab tests will be carried out, followed by 20 independent lab tests.