The decision today (Tuesday) by the European Parliament’s Industry Committee (ITRE) to keep customers confused by delaying the introduction of clear energy label rules is severely disappointing, the European Environmental Bureau (EEB) and Ecos, the EU standards organisation, said.

Stephane Arditi, Coolproducts coordinator at the EEB, said:

“This disappointing vote is a glaring missed opportunity to allow consumers to make truly informed choices about the appliances they buy. Keeping the confusing A+ grade classes, refusing to reveal the energy consumption of products in adverts, and not allowing shoppers to return products that are less efficient than claimed on their label, is stopping consumers saving as much as they could on energy bills.”

By postponing the move from the current A+ grade system to clearer A to G labels – proven to be more understandable to consumers – and rejecting the possibility of a quick agreement among European institutions on the issue, the vote condemns European citizens to more time in the dark.

Alun Jones, Project Coordinator at Ecos, said:

“Today’s vote opens the door for deceptions such as the Volkswagen emissions scandal to become increasingly common across Europe, instead of paving the way for energy labels to more accurately reflect how products are realistically used in daily life.”

The vote also flies in the face of Europe’s goal to reduce carbon emissions by allowing large, energy guzzling products to achieve the highest rating more easily than smaller appliances that consume less energy.