One in Five Hazardous Mixtures Not Notified to Poison Centres: ECHA Enforcement Findings

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) Forum pilot enforcement project has revealed significant gaps in compliance with poison centre notification obligations for hazardous mixtures placed on the EU market.

Inspections carried out in 18 EU/EEA countries assessed a total of 1,597 hazardous mixtures, of which 19% were not notified to poison centres. These findings indicate substantial non-compliance with Poison Centre Notification (PCN) requirements under the EU Classification, Labelling and Packaging (CLP) Regulation.

Why Poison Centre Notification Is Critical

Under the CLP Regulation, companies placing hazardous mixtures on the market must submit information on their composition to appointed national bodies.

This information is made available to poison centres to enable rapid and accurate medical advice in case of accidental exposure or poisoning incidents.

According to ECHA inspectors, missing notifications directly undermine the effectiveness of emergency health response systems.

UFI Deficiencies Also Identified

The enforcement project also evaluated the presence of the Unique Formula Identifier (UFI) on product labels.

Results showed that 15% of inspected mixtures lacked the required UFI code on the label.

The 16-character alphanumeric UFI is a key tool enabling poison centres to quickly identify a mixture involved in an incident. Its absence can delay correct product identification in emergencies.

Enforcement Measures Applied

Where non-compliance was detected, inspectors applied several enforcement measures, including:

Written advice
Verbal advice
Administrative orders
Fines
Criminal complaints

Several cases remained under follow-up at the time of reporting.

PCN Obligation Under CLP

According to the CLP Regulation, Poison Centre Notification is mandatory for mixtures classified for:

Human health hazards
Physical hazards

Examples include mixtures that are:

Skin corrosive
Causing serious eye damage
Explosive

Notifications must be submitted for each EU country where the mixture is placed on the market.

Purpose of the Enforcement Project

The main objectives of the ECHA Forum pilot project were to:

Strengthen CLP enforcement across the EU
Harmonise national inspection practices
Increase duty holder awareness of legal obligations

Company names and product brands were not disclosed, as the project focused on improving compliance rather than penalising individual operators.

Conclusion

ECHA enforcement results demonstrate that compliance with PCN and UFI obligations remains insufficient across the EU market.

With nearly one in five hazardous mixtures not notified, the findings highlight the continued importance of regulatory compliance, market surveillance and proper hazard communication.

Companies placing hazardous mixtures on the EU market must ensure: