EN    EN EN  
EN    EN  COMMISSION OF THE E UROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 
COM 
xx 
Draft 
COMMISSION DECISION 
of […] 
amending, for the purpose of adaptation to technical progress, Annex I to Council 
Directive 76/769/EEC as regards restrictions on  the marketing and use of lamp oils and 
grill lighter fluids  
EN 2   EN Draft 
COMMISSION DECISION 
of […] 
amending, for the purpose of adapting to technical progress, Annex I to Council 
Directive 76/769/EEC as regards restrictions on  the marketing and use of lamp oils and 
grill lighter fluids 
(Text with EEA relevance) 
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty esta blishing the European Community, 
Having regard to Council Directive 76/769/EEC of 27 July 1976 on the approximation of the 
laws, regulations and administ rative provisions of the Members States relating to the 
restrictions on the marketing and use of  dangerous substances and preparations1, and in 
particular Article 2a thereof, 
Whereas: (1) Since 1 July 2000 Directive 76/769/EEC restricts the sale to consumers of coloured 
and scented oils presenting an aspiration hazard for use in decorative lamps and 
labelled with the risk phrase R65. 
(2) Although Directive 67/548/EEC of the Eur opean Parliament and the Council on the 
classification, packaging and la belling of dangerous substances
2 and Directive 
1999/45/EC of the European Parliament  and the Council on the classification, 
packaging and labelling of dangerous preparations3 provide that containers of grill 
lighter fluids and lamp oils, labelled with R65, have to be fitted with child-resistant 
fastening, accidents still occur as containers  are either not closed properly, or the 
substance has been transferred from large or iginal containers to smaller containers 
without child-resist ant fastenings.  
(3) According to data provided by national authoritie s, it has become apparent that the 
unscented and uncoloured lamp oils and grill lig hter fluids, labelled R65, pose a risk to 
human health, and specifically to the health  of young children, wh en ingested, causing 
breathing disturbances and disord ers of the respiratory tract. 
                                                 
1 OJ L 262, 27.9.1976, p. 201. 
2 OJ L 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1. 
3 OJ L 200, 30.7.1999, p. 1.  
EN 3   EN (4) It is therefore necessary to  strengthen current provisions on lamp oils used in 
decorative lamps and to ensure that substances  and mixtures sold as  grill lighter fluids 
intended for supply to the general public are appropriately labelled. 
(5) In order to minimise accidental ingesti on by small children, packaging requirements 
should be introduced to make lamp oils and grill lighter fluids less likely to attract or 
arouse the curiosity of child ren and to avoid that thes e products are mistaken for 
drinks. The size of the container should also be limited to minimise accidents linked to 
the transfer from original containers to  smaller containers without child-resistant 
fastenings or appropriate labelling. 
(6) A European Standard for the design of safe decorative lamps was adopted in 
September 2002 in order to minimise the po ssibility of small children having access to 
the oils used in decorative oil lamps (EN 14059). This standard provides a presumption of conformity to  Directive 2001/95/EC of th e European Parliament and 
the Council of 3 December 2001 on general product safety
4. Consumer protection has 
to be strengthened by requiring co mpliance with this standard.  
(7) The restrictions on marketing and use laid down by this Decision ta ke into account the 
current state of knowledge regarding safe r alternatives. Memb er States should 
periodically report to the Commission on de velopment of alternatives in order to 
facilitate a review by the European Chem icals Agency. The Agency should assess, on 
the basis of the effectiveness of the proposed  measures to protect child safety, whether 
it is necessary to adopt additional measures and ban the use of grill lighter fluids and 
fuel for decorative lamps. For this purpos e, the Agency will take into account the 
requirements of Annex XV to Regulati on (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European 
Parliament and of the Council of 18 D ecember 2006 concerning the Registration, 
Evaluation, Authorisation and Rest riction of Chemicals (REACH)5. 
(8) Directive 2008/112/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 
December 2008 amending Council Directiv es 76/768/EEC, 88/378/EEC, 1999/13/EC 
and Directives 2000/53/EC, 2002/96/EC and 2004/ 42/EC of the European Parliament 
and of the Council in order to adapt them to Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on 
classification, labelling and packag ing of substances and mixtures6, imposes 
obligations on manufacturers of danger ous substances placed on the Community 
market by 1 December 2010. To facilitate im plementation of the additional labelling 
and packaging provisions included in this Decision, the same date should be imposed 
on those placing lamp oils and grill lighter s on the Community market. In addition, the 
new risk phrase (H304) required by Di rective 2008/112/EC should be used. 
(9) Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 re peals and replaces Direc tive 76/769/EEC with effect 
from 1 June 2009. Annex XVII to that Regu lation replaces Annex I to Directive 
76/769/EEC. Any amendment to the restrict ions adopted under Directive 76/769/EEC 
should therefore be incorporated in Annex XVII to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006. 
(10) Directive 76/769/EEC should therefore be amended accordingly. 
                                                 
4 OJ L 11, 15.1.2002, p.4. 
5 OJ L 396, 30.12.2006, p. 1. 
6 OJ L 345, 23.12.2008, p. 68.  
EN 4   EN (11) The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the 
Committee on the adaptation to technical progre ss of the Directives for the elimination 
of technical barriers to trade in dangerous substa nces and preparations, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:  
Article 1 
Annex I to Directive 76/769/EEC is amended in acco rdance with the text of the Annex to this 
Decision 
Article 2 
This Decision is addressed to the Member States. 
Done at Brussels, […] 
 For the Commission 
 […] 
 Member of the Commission  
EN 5   EN ANNEX  
Point 3 of Annex I to Directive 76/ 769/EEC is replaced by the following: 
3. Liquid substances or mixtures, 
which are regarded as dangerous according to the definitions in Council Directive 67/548/EEC* and Directive 1999/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council **. 1. Shall not be used in: 
– ornamental articles intended to produce light or 
colour effects by means of different phases, for example in ornamental lamps and ashtrays, 
– tricks and jokes, 
– games for one or more part icipants, or any article 
intended to be used as such, even with ornamental aspects. 
2. Articles not complying with paragraph 1 shall not be 
placed on the market. 
3. Shall not be placed on the market if they contain a 
colouring agent, unless requi red for fiscal reasons, or 
perfume, or both, if they: 
– can be used as fuel in decorative oil lamps for supply 
to the general public, and 
– present an aspiration hazar d and are labelled with 
R65 or H304. 
4. Decorative oil lamps for s upply to the general public 
shall not be placed on the market unless they conform to the European Standard on Decorative oil lamps (EN 14059) adopted by the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN).  
5. Without prejudice to th e implementation of other 
Community provisions relati ng to the classification, 
packaging and labelling of dangerous substances and mixtures, suppliers shall ensure, before the placing on the market, that the following requirements are met:  
(a) lamp oils, labelled with R65 or H304, 
intended for supply to the general public are visibly, legibly a nd indelibly marked 
as follows:  “Keep lamps filled with this liquid out of the reach of children”; and, by 1 December 2010, “Just a sip of lamp oil – or even sucking the wick of lamps – may lead to life-threatening lung damage”;  
(b) grill lighter fluids, la belled with R65 or 
H304, intended for supply to the general public are legibly a nd indelibly marked  
EN 6   EN by 1 December 2010 as follows:
“Just a sip of grill lighter may lead to life-threatening lung damage”; 
(c) lamp oils and grill lighters, labelled with 
R65 or H304, intended for supply to the general public are packaged in black opaque containers not exceeding 1 litre by 1 December 2010; 
6. No later than 1 June 2014, the Commission shall 
request the European Chemicals Agency to prepare a dossier, in accordance with Article 69 of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council (REACH) ***, w ith a view to ban, if 
appropriate, grill lighter flui ds and fuel for decorative 
lamps, labelled R65 or H304, intended for supply to the general public.  
7. Natural or legal persons placing on the market for the 
first time lamp oils and grill lighter fluids, labelled with 
R65 or H304, shall by 1 December 2011, and annually thereafter, provide data on alternatives to lamp oils and grill lighter fluids labe lled R65 or H304 to the 
competent authority in the Member State concerned. Member States shall make those data available to the Commission. 
 
* OJ 196, 16.8.1967, p. 1. 
** OJ L 200, 30.7.1999, p. 1. *** OJ L 136, 29.5.2007, p. 3.