Corporate report

OPSS Delivery Report 2025-2026: Statistical Annex

Published 5 August 2026

1. Purpose

This Annex presents further information on the statistics and metrics used in the OPSS Delivery Report 2025 to 2026. It explains the background to the statistics including how the data is collected, any caveats to using the data and any references to published documents.

2. Enquiry Case Management System (ECM)

ECM is an internal digital system used by OPSS to record case management activities, replacing multiple legacy systems to ensure consistency between teams and projects. It went live in September 2022, with additional capabilities and refinements being added regularly. It covers investigations, enquiries, requests for advice and checks on compliance that do not necessarily identify non-compliance. 

The system implements a case structure but allows linking of related cases, products or business entities, and allows regulators to track and manage caseloads, whilst retaining vital information which supports collaboration with key partners and manages record keeping. Each case can be for single or multiple products, entire classes of products, and can concern referrals into or out of OPSS, enforcement or advisory action, or product testing and evidence management. ECM has been designed to provide better data and ease of operation, and for example allows staff to seamlessly attach emails or information to case records supporting efficient working whilst providing a robust evidence trail. This coupled with developments of the ECM for disclosure purposes will significantly enhance the case management system to support investigations.

Lead officers are responsible for the quality and accuracy of the data they enter. Entries are regularly updated with progress and additional information relevant to the case, allowing users to track actions taken.

The following information in the delivery report was sourced from ECM:

• Ecodesign and energy labelling
• Legal metrology enforcement
• Local authority engagement
• Timber regulations compliance
• Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
• Genetic resources (Nagoya protocol)
• Batteries and Accumulators (Placing on the Market)
• Gas and Electricity Metering
• Electric Vehicles and Fuel Labelling
• Construction products
• Restrictions on Certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS)

3. Distributor Takeback

According to The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations 2013, distributors (typically retailers) of Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) have two options:

• Provide in-store take-back of waste electrical equipment on a one-for-one, like-for-like basis, or
• Enrol in the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS).

Valpak Retail WEEE Services manages the Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS), which grants members an exemption from the obligation to accept in-store returns of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) when customers buy a new, equivalent item of electrical or electronic equipment (EEE).

Figures from this section were taken from the Phase 7 Distributor Takeback Scheme (DTS) Database, which is a real-time datasheet that summarises the current status of businesses that were not registered for Phase 7 DTS.

OPSS conducted checks to verify the trading status of these businesses and issued warning and follow-up letters as necessary. Compliance efforts included businesses offering their own take-back solutions or joining the DTS. Additionally, OPSS undertook compliance visits to ensure adherence to regulations. Records of letters sent, and visits carried out are maintained in internal records. Phase 7 of the scheme is running from 1st January 2024 until 31st December 2026.

4. National Packaging Waste Database (NPWD)

Vehicle and automotive and industrial battery producers must register with OPSS within 28 days of first placing batteries on the UK market. This is done via the NPWD, a database maintained by the Environment Agency.

Access the NPWD - Registered users only, Environment Agency website.

5. Incident Management Team (IMT) product safety case notifications and enquiries data

OPSS provides a national incident response capability for nationally significant, novel, or contentious product regulation issues. The Incident Management Team (IMT) holds data to track all cases received, supplementing the information on the PSD.

Cases received by IMT are assessed and escalated in accordance with the published OPSS Incident Management Plan. Issues that are assessed as potentially meeting incident triggers and where OPSS may take the lead can be escalated through the Case Assessment and Monitoring Escalation Protocol (CAM-EP). This protocol coordinates the gathering of further information and supports a decision on whether further escalation to a national incident response is required.

Lead officers are responsible for the quality and accuracy of the data they enter. Entries are updated with progress and additional information relevant to the case, allowing officers to track how cases are escalated and what actions are taken.

Status indicators provide a broad indication of the latest position regarding each specific case, including marking it as resolved when the issue has been addressed.

Table 1: Cases to OPSS Incident Management Team, 2025 to 2026

	Number
Consumer products	387
Construction products	169
Case Assessment and Monitoring Escalation Protocol (CAM-EP)	4
National incident response	1

Source: OPSS IMT internal systems

6. Serious Undesirable Effect Notifications

A ‘serious undesirable effect’ (SUE) is one in which the normal or reasonably foreseeable use of a cosmetic results in temporary or permanent functional incapacity, disability, hospitalisation, congenital anomalies or an immediate vital risk or death. Responsible persons and distributors are required to report SUEs resulting from the use of cosmetics to OPSS via email using the SUEs form. These forms are then collated by operational teams.

Access the SUEs form.

7. Ecodesign and Energy Labelling

Consumers purchasing products that use energy want to make informed choices and rely on products to be accurately labelled in terms of energy usage. OPSS undertake a range of actions to ensure that products operate at the rated energy efficiency class. 

Products are purchased for compliance visual examinations and for laboratory testing to determine efficiency ratings. Officers also assess technical files, reviewing the documentation that manufacturers must provide to demonstrate that their products meets all regulatory requirements.

Figures in this section are mainly recorded on the Enquiry Case Management System (ECM).

8. Border Programme Data and estimating detriment

Ports and Borders consignment check data are collected from Local Authority Trading Standards officers by OPSS’ Border Profiling Unit using an excel spreadsheet. A reminder email is sent out each month, requesting the data for interventions carried out previously, taking into account the time lag to enable results to be collected. For example, a reminder email sent in April will request February interventions data. Updates to data from previous months are encouraged. The data is commercially sensitive and personal (as the names/addresses of sellers etc can include private addresses).

The data is cleaned and collated by OPSS statisticians and used to produce a quarterly dashboard.

Local Authorities may perform more than one check on a consignment if it contains different products and they usually only review a sample of goods in each consignment check.

Some Local Authorities only do desktop tests (not physical examinations).

Table 2: Enforcement activity at ports and borders, 2025 to 2026, by quarter

	Number of goods covered by consignment checks	Number of goods determined to be unsafe	Number of goods determined to be non-compliant	Total number of unsafe and non-compliant goods
Q1 (April-June 2025)	2,839,188	111,711	720,720	832,431
Q2 (July-September 2025)	3,243,379	91,399	695,266	786,665
Q3 (October-December 2025)	3,258,026	81,002	343,221	424,223
Q4 (January-March 2026)	1,969,487	61,807	637,810	699,617
Total (2025-2026)	11,310,080	345,919	2,397,013	2,742,936

Source: OPSS Ports and borders data collection

8.1 Notes

1. Usually, Local Authorities only review a sample of goods in each consignment check.
2. Excludes consignments where the results of checks are pending or unknown.
3. Some Local Authorities only do desktop tests (not physical examinations).
4. The number of goods covered by checks may vary between quarters, reflecting variation in the mix of products identified through targeting and the quantities in which those products are present within consignments.

8.2 Estimating detriment at the border

As detailed in the delivery report, estimated avoided detriment was around £81 million for unsafe products and £209 million for non-compliant products. These totals were calculated by applying the relevant product-category detriment estimate to the number of products identified and then summing the results across product categories. For the underlying per-product estimates and further detail on the methodology, please refer to the detriment research report published in March 2026^{[footnote 1]}.

As shown in Table 2, substantially more non-compliant products than unsafe products were identified at the border. The larger detriment estimate associated with non-compliant products (£209 million) is therefore primarily driven by the greater volume of products identified, rather than evidence that non-compliant products present greater safety-related harm.

Unsafe and non-compliant products have been presented separately in the delivery report because non-compliance can cover a broad range of issues, including labelling or technical requirements, and does not necessarily indicate that a product presents a direct risk of injury or harm. As explained in the published detriment research, limitations in the available data result in “non-compliant products not fully capturing the physical harm component of detriment”. The research therefore places greater emphasis on unsafe products, for which “the impact on consumers and businesses is better evidenced and materially significant^{[footnote 2]}”. Further information on the methodology and limitations of the estimates is available in the published detriment report.

9. Value of Markets Analysis

The Economics team at OPSS have estimated the value of the markets that are regulated by OPSS.

In 2025, it is estimated that there were 306,890 businesses in scope of OPSS regulation, representing 11% of the total UK business population. The combined turnover of these businesses is estimated at £525bn (with a low estimate of £309bn, and high estimate of £742bn) including consumer electronics, household appliances, clothing and furniture. These figures are estimated using the 2025 edition of the Office for National Statistics (ONS) UK business size and activity dataset^{[footnote 3]}. OPSS also carries out enforcement activity for construction products with an estimated turnover of £109bn (with a low estimate of £60.3bn, and high estimate of £158bn).  

9.1 Value and Size of OPSS Markets

To estimate the value of OPSS regulated markets, we have utilised ONS Business Size and Activity Turnover Data (2025)^{[footnote 4]} .This dataset groups UK VAT-paying businesses by their business activity using Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes. ONS SIC codes were mapped to 24 different regulations, creating a ‘business populations’ list. These were further mapped to OPSS regulations by OPSS policy experts. The ONS provides business turnover data in bands rather than at individual business level. As such, each business is assigned an annual turnover range, and the total turnover for all businesses cannot be precisely determined. The central estimate uses the midpoint of each band to approximate total turnover for all businesses within OPSS SIC codes. High and low estimates apply the lowest and highest value of each band respectively. The final band (£50,000+) uses £50,000 turnover for all scenarios and is likely to underestimate as a result.

The same ONS dataset^{[footnote 5]} contains the number of businesses in each turnover band. These figures can be mapped directly to the SIC codes which are within scope of OPSS regulation. These estimates are therefore not presented as a range unlike the value of markets.

To maintain consistency with figures presented in previous publications, OPSS analysts have separated the SIC codes relating to the construction sector. The same methodology is applied here as for the total value and size of OPSS Markets.

9.2 Caveats 

a) The figures provided use turnover as a proxy for market value. These are however not equivalent and should not be treated as interchangeable. b) While the ONS provides information on the business activities associated with each SIC code group, this classification is not granular. This means matching based on SIC code descriptions may therefore have limited accuracy.

10. OPSS Consumer Surveys

These consumer tracker surveys, called waves, seek to build on a body of existing research and evidence in this area, including the Consumer Attitudes to Product Safety study. They aim to benchmark and measure various key objectives of OPSS as well as filling evidence gaps for various policy topics.

To support these objectives, OPSS commissioned YouGov to understand and monitor consumers’ awareness and attitudes of product safety, their attitudes towards the product safety regulatory system, and understanding of different organisations concerned with product safety.

The study represents one of the largest of its type and provides invaluable insight into thousands of experiences of how people perceive the safety of products and handle any safety issues they face.

The Wave 9 findings are based upon a large-scale representative sample of 10,037 people from across the United Kingdom (UK) collected through online research methods during wave nine. Fieldwork was carried out between 14th April to 2nd May 2025. A supporting survey of 251 people who are low or non-internet users (“offline adults”) was conducted via telephone between 30th April to 16th May 2025. Where appropriate, comparisons have been made with survey data from previous research in the Public Attitudes Tracker. Not all sections or questions are asked in every survey. The technical report contains details of questionnaire design and topic inclusion.

After the close of the online survey, four text-based online focus groups were conducted with survey participants. Groups were split by the type of products they owned, experiences of safety issues and health condition.

A mix of demographics (age, social grade, genders, ethnicities, and locations) were included across groups. There were between 8 to 11 participants per group and each group lasted 90 minutes. Participants were asked to respond to an open-ended question as part of the recruitment criteria to ensure they were able to participate in text-based research. Participants were incentivised via retail vouchers, in line with the MRS Code of Conduct. Focus groups were conducted in May 2025.

The wave 9 survey also included additional focus on several topical issues: consumers with physical disabilities, emerging technologies including AI, and personal light electric vehicles (e-scooters and e-bikes)

OPSS product safety and consumers: Wave 9 – harms and detriment - GOV.UK

11. OPSS research into consumer behaviour on online marketplaces

This research was commissioned by the Office for Product Safety and Standards from YouGov to understand consumers’ interaction with online marketplaces. Its objectives were to explore how consumers end up purchasing from online marketplaces, and their related opinions, attitudes and behaviours. Its findings were based on a quantitative survey with a representative sample of 2073 online marketplace users from across the UK, supported by 3 focus group discussions, each with 10-12 participants.

OPSS research into consumer behaviour on online marketplaces - GOV.UK

12. Section 70 Weights and Measures (Legal Metrology)

Under Section 70 of the Weights & Measures Act 1985, Local Weights and Measures Authorities (LWMAs) in Great Britain have a statutory duty to report to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade the level of local Weights and Measures enforcement work conducted over a twelve-month period.

Read the Section 70 report for 2024-2025 and accompanying methodology and quality report

13. Product safety testing sampling protocol programme

The Product Testing Sampling Protocol report provides an overview of product testing carried out under the OPSS Sampling Protocol programme. It examines data collected by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS), based on submissions from local authorities and test houses.

The programme, which has run annually since 2018, enables local authorities to test-purchase products and assess compliance with product safety legislation. OPSS provides funding and access to technical expertise to support this activity.

Trading Standards Officers (TSOs) in Great Britain and Environmental Health Officers in Northern Ireland are advised to adopt a risk-based approach, using their professional judgment to decide which products to test purchase and which legislation to assess compliance against. This report covers data collected for the 2024 to 2025 programme.

Read the Product Safety Testing Sampling Protocol Programme: April 2024 – March 2025 - GOV.UK

14. Primary Authority scheme

Primary Authority, administered by the OPSS, enables businesses, including charities and franchises, to form partnerships with a single local authority or Fire and Rescue Service. Through these partnerships, businesses receive assured and consistent regulatory advice that must be respected by other regulators, supporting better compliance and reducing duplication. The scheme supports improved relationships between regulators and businesses and contributes to local economic growth.

Work is ongoing to enhance data collection and reporting on the scheme’s operation. A new system is expected to be introduced in late 2026, which may impact the numbers reported in future time periods.

15. Further details

The Office for Product Safety and Standards is part of the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. Our purpose is to make regulation work, so that it protects people and enables businesses to understand their obligations.

This publication was produced by the Data Analysis and Evidence Strategy Team. If you have any enquiries about the content, please contact: OPSSAnalysis@businessandtrade.gov.uk

16. Footnotes

1. Estimating detriment from unsafe and non-compliant products research publication – March 2026 ↩

2. See paragraph 6.6 of the published OPSS detriment report – March 2026 ↩

3. UK business: activity, size and location - Office for National Statistics, 2025 Edition, Table 9 - ONS ↩

4. UK business: activity, size and location - Office for National Statistics, 2025 Edition, Table 9 - ONS ↩

5. UK business: activity, size and location - Office for National Statistics, 2025 Edition, Table 9 - ONS ↩