Interpretation ID: 1982-1.12

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: 02/09/82

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; F. Berndt; NHTSA

TO: G & C Mills Plastics Inc.

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT: This responds to your recent letter asking whether an auxiliary wind deflector which you sell must have a "safety label." Also, you ask whether you should send one of your products to the agency in order to obtain official approval.

The answer to your first question is yes. Section 108(a)(1) of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act provides that no person shall

"(A) manufacture for sale, sell, offer for sale, or introduce or deliver for introduction in interstate commerce, or import into the United States, any motor vehicle or item of motor vehicle equipment manufactured on or after the date any applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standard takes effect under this title unless it is in conformity with such standard . . ."

"(C) fail to issue a certificate required by section 114, or issue a certificate to the effect that a motor vehicle or item of motor vehicle equipment conforms to all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards, if such person in the exercise of due care has reason to know that such certificate is false or misleading in a material respect."

Since your auxiliary wind deflector is a piece of motor vehicle equipment and is subject to Safety Standard No. 205, Glazing Materials, you are required by section 108 to certify that it complies with that standard. As noted on page 2 of our October 8, 1980 letter to Mr. Hingtgen (which you received), section 114 of the Vehicle Safety Act requires the manufacturer or distributor to place a label or tag on the item of equipment or on the outside container in which the equipment is delivered. This label or tag must state (i.e., certify) that the item of equipment complies with all applicable safety standards, in this case Standard No. 205. You are correct in your assumption that you print this label or tag yourself. The agency does not provide the labels.

In answer to your second question, you should not send a sample of your product to the agency for approval. The agency does not grant prior approval of any motor vehicle or piece of motor vehicle equipment. As you can see from section 108 quoted above, the Vehicle Safety Act requires self-certification by the manufacturer that its product is in compliance with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards. The agency's enforcement program begins only after the manufacturer has certified its product (i.e., the agency may obtain an item of equipment or vehicle from the open market and determine whether it is in fact in compliance with all standards).

I hope this has answered all remaining questions you might have.

SINCERELY, G. & C. Mills Plastics Inc.

December 19, 1981

Frank Berndt, Chief Counsel, U.S. Department of Transportation,

Re 'Colorado' Weathershield

Dear Mr. Berndt,

Your letter of November 30th has just arrived on my desk. Please note that we have moved our office from Los Angeles to Toronto.

Please also be assured that we are most anxious to comply with whatever Highway Traffic Safety Administration standards apply to our product. Cut weathershield fits to the door frame of automobiles or small trucks with clips - no screws or body holes are required. The window can be wound up or down completely - the weathershield does not alter this function. Also our weathershield is made of clear acrylic plastic about 1/8" thick with a very slight non-glare tint to it. It washes clean with ordinary soap and water.

The article is manufactured in Sydney, Australia by a large manufacturer of all kinds of plastic items - refrigerator interiors and linings - light fixtures etc, etc. We import the item complete, in bulk - we just carton it individually.

The weathershield presently sells all over the world, Australia (for the past 20 years), also Europe, Japan, Canada and the Caribean, and my source in Australia informs me that there has never ever been a problem regarding the safety of this product.

I have read through the text of Standard No. 205, and your 2 letters dated Sept 8 and Oct 8th to Mr. Hingtgen, which you were kind enough to send me and from what I can see, our product complies satisfactorily, but for 'Safety Standards' Label.

However, I wonder if I should be the judge of this fact or should I not be sending a sample to your department for study and more official approval. I have enclosed a copy of our brochure which explains in more detail the nature of our product.

Please advise what further action you wish me to take and be assured of my fullest co-operation.

I. J. A. Mills

P.S. Would you please confirm that we do require the Safety Standards label as mentioned and do we print this ourselves?