nuclearcat wroteHarmful products in shops, is it worth to open topic about them?
Improper extension cords with wires doesn't match current rating, or connectors that might catch fire, plastic with missing markings about type, electronics with missing safety measures that will catch fire quickly with electricity issues in lebanon.
And i clearly seen even polish "rejects", products that is made in Asia, but didn't passed EU/poland safety tests, then sold visibly mediocre products, with polish-only labels in some lebanese $1 shops. (Usually manufacturers will sell them for very cheap for african countries, as otherwise they will have to throw it).
But i feel noone care about that subject, and they are fine smashing components for their tabbouleh in plastic mortar with sky high amount of phenolic compounds, or wooden covered by parquet lacquer with formaldehyde base, and dying from cancer in their 30ies-40ies.
But does anybody care?
By law, this is the job of the Industrial Research Institute (IRI), which I work with sometimes and which I've visited their testing labs and they are very professional and competent. I've been to their electrical testing laboratories and they have tests for cables, extension cords, aging tests for lightbulbs, etc...
Legally, this is how product/equipment safety and testing works in Lebanon:
-The Lebanese Standards Institution called LIBNOR decides to release a quality standard for a certain product which ends up being called NLXXXX where NL stands for Norme Libanaise.
-In most cases, LIBNOR consults international standards for the product/equipment at hand and adopts it as is. However, there are times when modifications are applied for the standard to fit the Lebanese context.
-All standards that are safety related receive a "mandatory" label from LIBNOR Board of Directors
-Then, LIBNOR works with the Ministry of Industry and the concerned ministries to draft a Council of Ministers Decree which officially labels these standards as mandatory and the Decree will also appoint the authority that will be tasked with testing the products/equipments against the standards.
-For many products/equipment, the IRI is usually this testing authority.
-After the Decree is published in the Official Gazette, the IRI can now go to the Port or the Airport and ask the Customs to hand them samples of products for them to go test. If they pass, a certificate of conformance is issued and import into the country is approved. If they fail, the importer will either have to destroy the products or return them to the country he got them from.
So now that this is out of the way, if you have any complaints regarding a certain product, you should call the IRI and notify them or you can also call/use the app of the Consumer Protection.
I hope this is useful.