Laser products entering the UK consumer market

Lasers are found in a range of consumer products: laser pointers, DIY equipment, night lights, and toys. As laser technology has developed over the years, this has led to the substantial price drop of consumer laser products, while often raising the output above a safe level. The Internet has provided a marketplace for these high-power devices, which may often by-pass product safety regulations. A new European standard for consumer laser products was published and adopted by the British Standards Institute, BS EN 50689:2021 “Safety of laser products—Particular Requirements for Consumer Laser Products.” Prior to the publication of BS EN 50689:2021, in 2017, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy coordinated a call for evidence on the consumer market proliferation and potential uses for laser pointers. The call was aimed to gain a better understanding of the consumer market of laser pointers and incidents involving these products. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has recently developed a quick practical guide called the “Laser product information sheet: practical guide.” This practical guide is intended to support UK local authorities and enforcement agencies and allow obvious issues to be spotted efficiently, to understand when the product must be prevented from being sold in the consumer market, and to understand when a decision needs further specialist assessment. This paper will introduce the new UKHSA practical guide, and the steps being implemented to make the guide available to UK authorities.