The Directive aims to harmonise the provisions of EU countries' national legislation concerning lifts and their safety components. It is based on the principles of the ‘New Approach to Technical Harmonisation and Standards’. In line with this new approach, the design and manufacture of lifts and their safety components is subject to essential health and safety requirements.

European Parliament and Council Directive 95/16/EC of 29 June 1995 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to lifts [See amending acts].

This Directive applies to lifts permanently serving buildings and constructions and the safety components used in such lifts.

The Directive defines the essential requirements which must be met by lifts and their safety components in manufacture and prior to being placed on the market.

All lifts or safety components manufactured in conformity with the harmonised standards are presumed to conform to the essential health and safety requirements.

Harmonised European standards are drawn up by the European standardisation bodies on the basis of the essential requirements. The details of these non-binding standards are published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

All safety components manufactured in conformity with the harmonised standards are presumed to be such that the lifts in which they are installed satisfy the essential requirements concerned.

Before being placed on the market, lifts and safety components must have the CE conformity mark affixed which:

Where a notified body is involved in the production inspection phase, its identification number is incorporated in the CE mark.

Where lifts or safety components are subject to other Directives providing for the affixing of the CE mark, the latter indicates that they also conform to the provisions of those Directives.

The Directive 2006/42/EC aims to ensure the free movement of machines and their accessories whilst laying down essential requirements regarding the health and safety of consumers. In this context, it amends the present Directive given that the application of the Directive on machinery designed for lifting persons calls for a clearer distinction between the products covered by the two directives.

Directive 95/16/EC is repealed by Directive 2014/33/EU with effect from 20 April 2016.

REFERENCES

Act	Entry into force	Deadline for transposition in the Member States	Official Journal
Directive 95/16/EC	27.9.1995	1.7.1997	OJ L 213 of 7.9.1995

Amending act(s)	Entry into force	Deadline for transposition in the Member States	Official Journal
Regulation (EC) No 1882/2003	20.11.2003	-	OJ L 284 of 31.10.2003
Directive 2006/42/EC	29.6.2006	29.6.2008	OJ L 157 of 9.6.2006

Successive amendments and corrections to Directive 95/16/EC have been incorporated in the basic text. This consolidated version is for reference purpose only.

Directive 2014/33/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to lifts and safety components for lifts (Official Journal L 96 of 29 March 2014, p. 251-308)

Commission communication in the framework of the implementation of the Directive 2006/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 May 2006 on machinery, and amending Directive 95/16/EC Text with EEA relevance (Publication of titles and references of harmonised standards under the directive) [Official Journal C 110 of 8.4.2011].

This communication publishes the lists of titles and references of European standards meeting the essential requirements set out in the Directive. It replaces all the previous lists published in the Official Journal.

The NANDO database helps the user find the European notified bodies as well as third country bodies which are responsible for carrying out the conformity assessment procedures referred to in the New Approach directives.