The Passenger Car (Fuel Consumption and CO2 Emissions Information) Regulations 2001

Made: 30th October 2001

Laid before Parliament: 31st October 2001

Coming into force: 21st November 2001

The Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, being a Minister designated for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972 in relation to measures relating to the reduction of emission of pollutants from internal combustion engines, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 2(2) of that Act and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf, hereby makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1

These Regulations may be cited as the Passenger Car (Fuel Consumption and CO₂ Emissions Information) Regulations 2001 and shall come into force on 21st November 2001.

Disapplication of the Passenger Car Fuel Consumption Order

2

Article 4 of the Passenger Car Fuel Consumption Order 1983 shall have effect with the addition of the following sub-paragraph at the end of paragraph (1)—

(d) cars to which the Passenger Car (Fuel Consumption and CO₂ Emissions Information) Regulations 2001 apply

Interpretation

3

• (1) In these Regulations—

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• “dealer” means a retailer or other person who displays or offers for sale or lease new passenger cars to end users;

• “EU certificate of conformity” has the same meaning as “certificate of conformity” in Article 3(5) of the Type Approval Regulation;

• “EU type approval certificate” means a type approval certificate issued pursuant to Article 28 or 41 of the Type Approval Regulation;

• “enforcement authority” means—in England and Wales and Scotland, the Secretary of State or a local weights and measures authority within the meaning of section 69 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 ; andin Northern Ireland, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment;

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• “fuel economy guide” means the publication containing official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ figures, which is published by the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for the purposes of Article 4 of Council Directive 1999/94/EC of 13th December 1999 and which meets the requirements specified in Schedule 1;

• “fuel economy label” means a label which contains the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ figures for a model of new passenger car and which meets the requirements specified in Schedule 2;

• “make”, in relation to a passenger car, means the trade name of the manufacturer appearing on the EU certificate of conformity and the EU type approval certificate relating to that car;

• “model”, in relation to a passenger car, means the commercial description of its make and type, and any variant or version covered by that description;

• “new passenger car” means a passenger car which has not previously been sold to a person who bought it for a purpose other than that of selling or supplying it;

• “official fuel consumption” means, in relation to a model of passenger car, the fuel consumption figures for that model measured in accordance with the provisions of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 2017/1151 and contained in the relevant EU type approval certificate or EU certificate of conformity, except that where a model comprises more than one variant or version it means the highest such figures for any of those variants or versions;

• “official specific emissions of CO₂” means, in relation to a model of passenger car, the specific emissions of CO₂ figures for that model measured in accordance with the provisions of Commission Regulation (EU) No. 2017/1151 and contained in the relevant EU type approval certificate or the EU certificate of conformity, except that where a model comprises more than one variant or version it means the highest such figures for any of those variants or versions;

• “passenger car” means a motor vehicle to which these Regulations apply by virtue of regulation 4;

• “point of sale” means a location where new passenger cars are displayed or offered for sale or lease and includes a car showroom or forecourt and a trade fair where new cars are presented to the public;

• “promotional literature” means all printed matter used in the marketing, advertising and promotion of a new passenger car for sale or lease to the general public;

• “supplier” means the manufacturer of a passenger car or any person authorised to act on that person’s behalf within the Community;

• “the Type Approval Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2018/858 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on the approval and market surveillance of motor vehicles and their trailers, and of systems, components and separate technical units intended for such vehicles;

• “type”, “variant” and “version” have the same meaning as in Part B of Annex I to the Type Approval Regulation.

Application

4

These Regulations apply to motor vehicles with at least four wheels (excluding quadricycles as defined in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) No 168/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the approval and market surveillance of two- or three-wheel vehicles and quadricycles as it may be amended from time to time) which are within category M1 in Article 4(1)(a) of the Type Approval Regulation and which—

• (a) have been manufactured to conform with a vehicle type approval granted pursuant to the Type Approval Regulation; and

• (b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• (c) are not special purpose vehicles as specified in point 5 of Part A of Annex I to the Type Approval Regulation.

Suppliers’ duty in respect of the provision of official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO2 figures

5

• (1) A supplier of a new passenger car shall, on request by a dealer, provide free of charge to the dealer the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ figures for any model of passenger car manufactured by that supplier.

• (2) Where a dealer makes a request for the purposes of paragraph (1), the supplier shall ensure that the information requested is provided promptly to the dealer.

Dealers’ duty in respect of the fuel economy label

6

A dealer shall ensure that there is displayed in a clearly visible manner on or near each new passenger car displayed or offered for sale or lease by that dealer at a point of sale, a fuel economy label for the model to which that car belongs.

Dealers’ duty in respect of the fuel economy guide

7

Upon request by any prospective end user of any new passenger car displayed or offered for sale or lease by any dealer, a copy of the current edition of the fuel economy guide shall be provided at the point of sale by that dealer free of charge to that prospective end user.

Dealers’ duty in respect of a poster or display

8

• (1) A dealer shall ensure that, in relation to each make of new passenger car displayed or offered for sale or lease to prospective end users by him at or through a point of sale, there is exhibited in a prominent position at that point of sale, a poster or display, which contains the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ figures for every model of that make.

• (2) A poster or display for the purposes of paragraph (1) shall comply with the requirements specified in Schedule 3.

Dealers’ and Suppliers’ duties in respect of promotional literature

9

• (1) The supplier of a model of passenger car shall ensure that all promotional literature for that model which is published or made available by him complies with the requirements specified in Schedule 4.

• (2) A dealer shall ensure that all promotional literature which is published or made available by him in respect of any model of new passenger car displayed or offered for sale or lease by him complies with the requirements specified in Schedule 4.

Dealers’ and Suppliers’ duties in respect of confusing marks, symbols etc.

10

• (1) The requirements of paragraph (2) shall be complied with by—

• (a) a dealer in respect of any fuel economy label, fuel economy guide, poster or display provided or exhibited by him in accordance with regulations 6, 7 or 8; and

• (b) a dealer and a supplier in respect of any promotional literature published or made available by him in accordance with regulation 9.

• (2) No mark, symbol or inscription relating to official fuel consumption or official specific emissions of CO₂ figures which does not comply with these Regulations, shall be included in any fuel economy label, poster or display, or promotional literature if it could mislead or confuse potential end users.

Enforcement and offences

11

• (1) Subject to paragraph (3) it shall be the duty of every enforcement authority to enforce these Regulations within its area.

• (2) Nothing in these Regulations shall authorise an enforcement authority in Scotland to bring proceedings in Scotland for an offence.

• (3) Schedule 5 shall have effect with regard to offences, enforcement and other matters.

SCHEDULE 1 — REQUIREMENTS FOR THE FUEL ECONOMY GUIDE

1

The guide shall contain a list of all new passenger car models available for purchase within the United Kingdom on the date of publication, grouped by manufacturer’s name in alphabetic order.

2

The fuel type, numerical value of the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ shall be presented for each model shown in the guide. Fuel consumption shall be expressed either in litres per 100 kilometres (1/100km) or kilometres per litre (km/l), and quoted to one decimal place, or, to the extent compatible with the provisions of Council Directive 80/181/EEC in miles per gallon. Official specific emissions of CO₂ shall be expressed in grams per kilometre (g/km) to the nearest whole number.

3

The guide shall contain a prominent list of the ten most fuel-efficient new passenger car models ranked in order of increasing specific emissions of CO₂ for each fuel type with the model with the lowest CO₂ emissions being placed at the top of the list. The listing shall specify the name of the model, the numerical value of the official fuel consumption and the official specific emission of CO₂.

4

The guide shall contain advice to motorists to the effect that correct use and regular maintenance of the vehicle and driving behaviour, such as avoiding aggressive driving, travelling at lower speeds, anticipation braking, correctly inflating tyres, reducing periods of idling, not carrying excessive weight, can improve the fuel consumption and reduce the CO₂ emissions of their passenger car.

5

The guide shall include an explanation of the effects of greenhouse gas emissions, potential climate change and the relevance to this of emissions from motor cars, as well as a reference to the different fuel options available to the consumer and their environmental implications based on the latest scientific evidence and legislative requirements.

6

The guide shall include a reference to the European Community’s target for the average emissions of CO₂ from new passenger cars and the date by which the target is to be achieved.

7

The guide shall include a reference to the European Commission’s own guide on fuel economy and CO₂ emissions on the internet, when it is available.

SCHEDULE 2 — REQUIREMENTS FOR THE FUEL ECONOMY LABEL

1

In order to allow for ease of recognition by consumers:

• (1) The label shall be easily legible and shall contain the wording and the relevant data in the categories specified in figure 1; and

• (2) The label shall be printed on A4 size (210y297 mm) material and shall contain text set out in the format specified in figure 1 which shall occupy an area of no less than 180y 80 mm.

2

The official fuel consumption figures shall be quoted to one decimal place.

3

The official specific emissions of CO₂ shall be quoted to the nearest whole number.

SCHEDULE 3 — REQUIREMENTS FOR POSTERS AND DISPLAYS

1

The minimum dimensions of one surface of the poster or display, containing information shall be 70 centimetres by 50 centimetres.

2

The information contained in the poster or display shall be easy to read.

SCHEDULE 4 — REQUIREMENTS FOR PROMOTIONAL LITERATURE

1

Subject to paragraph 2, the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ figures for the model in question shall be provided in the promotional literature.

2

If the promotional literature applies to more than one model of the same make, there shall be provided either the official fuel consumption and official specific CO₂ emissions figures for all the models covered, or the range between the worse and best official fuel consumption and official specific CO₂ emissions figures.

3

The fuel consumption figures shall be expressed in miles per gallon (mpg) and in either litres per 100 kilometres (1/100 km), or kilometres per litre (km/l) or an appropriate combination of these.

4

The official specific emissions of CO₂ shall be quoted to the nearest whole number in grams per kilometre (g/km) and all other numerical data shall be quoted to one decimal place.

5

All information on the official fuel consumption and official specific emissions of CO₂ shall be easy to read and easily understandable and shall be no less prominent than the main part of the information provided in the promotional literature.

SCHEDULE 5 — OFFENCES, ENFORCEMENT AND OTHER MATTERS

PART I — Provisions as to offences

Offences and penalties

1

• (1) It shall be an offence to contravene—

• regulation 5 (suppliers’ duty in respect of the provision of figures);

• regulation 6 (dealers’ duty in respect of the fuel economy label);

• regulation 7 (dealers’ duty in respect of the fuel economy guide);

• regulation 8 (dealers’ duty in respect of a poster or display);

• regulation 9 (dealers’ and suppliers’ duties in respect of promotional literature);

• regulation 10 (dealers’ and suppliers’ duties in respect of promotional literature.);

• paragraph 5 of this Schedule (obstruction of authorised officers and false statements); or

• paragraph 6(7) of this Schedule (prohibition of purported search and seizure by an unauthorised person).

• (2) A person guilty of any offence specified in sub-paragraph (1) shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

Prosecution of offences

2

Proceedings for an offence under these Regulations shall be instituted—

• (a) in England and Wales, by an enforcement authority;

• (b) in Northern Ireland, by or on behalf of the enforcement authority or the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland.

Defences

3

• (1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) to (4), in proceedings against a person for an offence under these Regulations it shall be a defence for that person to show that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid committing the offence.

• (2) Where in any proceedings (which in Scotland include the trial diet) against any person for such an offence the defence provided for by sub-paragraph (1) involves an allegation that the commission of the offence was due—

• (a) to the act or default of another, or

• (b) to reliance on information given by another,

that person shall not, without the leave of the court, be entitled to rely on the defence unless, not less than seven clear days before the hearing of the proceedings (or, in Scotland, the trial diet) he has served a notice under sub-paragraph (3) on the person bringing the proceedings.

• (3) A notice under this sub-paragraph shall give such information identifying or assisting in the identification of the person who is alleged to have committed the act or default or to have given information as is in the possession of the person serving the notice at the time he serves it.

• (4) A person shall not be entitled to rely on the defence provided by sub-paragraph (1) by reason of his reliance on information supplied by another, unless he shows that it was reasonable in all the circumstances for him to have relied on the information, having regard in particular—

• (a) to whether he had any reason to disbelieve the information, and

• (b) in the case of a supplier, to the steps which he took, and those which might reasonably have been taken, for the purpose of verifying the information.

Liability of a person other than the principal offender

4

• (1) Where the commission by any person of an offence under these Regulations is due to an act or default committed by some other person in the course of any business of his, that other person shall be guilty of the offence and may be proceeded against and punished by virtue of this sub-paragraph whether or not proceedings are taken against the first-mentioned person.

• (2) Where a body corporate is guilty of an offence under these Regulations (including where it is so guilty by virtue of sub-paragraph (1)) in respect of any act or default which is shown to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or similar officer of the body corporate or any person who was purporting to act in any such capacity, he, as well as the body corporate, shall be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

• (3) Where the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members, sub-paragraph (2) shall apply in relation to the acts and defaults of a member in connection with his functions of management as if he were a director of the body corporate.