242:. To obtain Kitemark certification, products and services are assessed by BSI Product Services to ensure that they meet the requirements of the relevant British, European, trade association or international specification or standard. In addition, delivery of the product or service is audited against an accredited quality management system. Once a Kitemark licence is issued, licensees are regularly audited and are subject to surveillance visits to ensure continuing compliance.
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The
Kitemark is not a legal requirement, but (according to BSI) is often used as a point of differentiation in competitive markets and is widely trusted. A 2006 survey demonstrated that the Kitemark is recognized by 82 per cent of the UK population, 88 per cent of whom trust the Kitemark, 93 per cent
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With the introduction of quality management systems standards in the 1970s
Kitemark schemes were developed in areas such as double glazing and fire safety. As of March 2021, there are more than 450 individual Kitemark schemes covering products as diverse as printed circuit boards and cattle tags, and
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The
Kitemark is most frequently used to identify products where safety is paramount, such as crash helmets, smoke alarms and flood defences. In recent years, the Kitemark has also been applied to a range of services, such as electrical installations; inclusive service provision; car servicing and
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poll showed that almost half (49 per cent) of UK consumers look for a
Kitemark when making a purchase. In 2022, a survey of over 2000 UK consumers concluded that 1 in 4 UK citizens look for a certification symbol or logo, such as the BSI Kitemark, when making the decision to purchase a quality
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For the next few decades, the use of
Kitemark was largely limited to technical and engineering applications up until the 1950s when the boom in consumer products led to increased concern about product safety. By the 1960s the Kitemark was being used to identify safe products in areas such as
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Common household or consumer products that are often
Kitemark certified include EV chargers; domestic furniture (such as sofas and mattresses); IoT/ smart connected products such as doorbells and security cameras. A full list can be seen on BSI's Kitemark product testing webpage.
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The
Kitemark was initially used as a trade mark on tramway rails in 1903 and was instrumental in reducing the number of specifications for rails from 75 to 5. The first full Kitemark scheme – equivalent to today's Kitemark – came into being in 1926, when the
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services as disparate as financial products and flood protection. There are also currently more than 2,500 Kitemark licences, held by, amongst others, Anglian Home
Improvements, Chubb Security & Fire Protection, Everest, Hygena, and Tarmac and Valor.
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According to BSI, Kitemark certification confirms that a product or service's claim has been independently and repeatedly tested by experts, meaning that purchasers can have trust and confidence in products and services that are BSI Kitemark certified.
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accident repair; and window installations. The term kite mark is sometimes used colloquially as a level of quality that can be used as a standard against which something of a similar type can be measured or judged, i.e. as a
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211:' specifications. "Kitemark" came from the kite shape of the graphic device which was drawn up – an uppercase B (for British) on its back, over an S (for standard), enclosed by a V (for verification).
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of whom believe that
Kitemark products are safer, and 91 per cent of whom believe the product is of a better quality than similar products without the Kitemark. A 2008
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The
Kitemark was subsequently registered as a trademark on 12 June 1903 and as such is among the oldest product quality marks in the world still in regular use.
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In 2008 and 2009 the Kitemark was independently voted a Superbrand in the Top 500 Business Superbrands in the UK.
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The Kitemark was originally conceived in 1903 as a symbol to identify products manufactured to meet
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429:"BSI Kitemark for product testing – UK product and service quality certification mark"
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nightwear, domestic furniture, pressure cookers and motorcycle helmets.
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625:"Kitemark Soars 100 Places in Leading Brands Survey /PR Newswire UK/"
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640:"Half of adults admit buying cheap items that may not last as long"
404:"BSI Kitemark – UK product and service quality certification mark"
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which is owned and operated by the British Standards Institution (
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569:"Standards, Training, Testing, Assessment and Certification"
551:"Standards, Training, Testing, Assessment and Certification"
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371: – Graphic mark indicating compliance with a standard
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383: – Declaration of conformity with British standards
665:"Watergate Flood Solutions – Misuse of BSI Kitemark"
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41:, potentially preventing the article from being
587:"Differentiate your business with BSI Kitemark"
377: – European Declaration of conformity mark
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222:was awarded a Kitemark for light fittings.
950:International Fairtrade Certification Mark
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476:"Where did the BSI Kitemark TM Originate?"
61:reliable, independent, third-party sources
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365: – Performance and quality assurance
79:Learn how and when to remove this message
16:UK product and service quality trade mark
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321:Innovation Management Kitemark ISO 56002
55:by replacing them with more appropriate
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359: – Standards produced by BSI Group
342:Vehicle Damage Repair Kitemark BS 10125
38:too closely associated with the subject
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266:of the British Standards Institution.
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797:(Commonwealth of Independent States)
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318:Inclusive Service Kitemark ISO 22458
282:Building Information Modelling (BIM)
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238:The Kitemark is only available from
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638:Winter, Martin (27 November 2022).
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523:"Rising to the Kitemark challenge"
276:Anti Microbial Resistance Kitemark
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610:GfK NOP Consumer Survey July 2006
105:BSI Kitemark certification symbol
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36:may rely excessively on sources
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521:Tran, Mark (27 February 2009).
291:Carbon Neutral Product Kitemark
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997:State quality mark of the USSR
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460:McWilliam, Robert C. (2001).
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984:Defunct and superseded marks
462:BSI: The first hundred years
270:Examples of Kitemark schemes
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940:Asthma and Allergy Friendly
933:Current international marks
883:(gold and silver jewellery)
839:(Australia and New Zealand)
803:(Australia and New Zealand)
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297:Domestic Furniture Kitemark
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791:(Gulf Cooperation Council)
285:Cable Testing Verification
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889:(environmental standards)
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294:Customer Service Kitemark
288:Carbon monoxide detectors
262:The word "Kitemark" is a
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970:Underwriter Laboratories
779:(Eurasian Customs Union)
220:General Electric Company
865:Certification marks of
623:Services, BSI Product.
464:. London: Thanet Press.
917:Non Polluting Vehicle
913:(industrial products)
363:Product certification
264:registered trade mark
315:Horse riding helmets
256:electrical product.
172:is a UK product and
919:(vehicle emissions)
727:Certification marks
857:(Northern Ireland)
369:Certification mark
339:Sanitiser Kitemark
330:Motorcycle helmets
303:Fire extinguishers
160:Kitemark home page
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895:(processed fruit)
357:British Standards
345:Windows and doors
333:Plugs and sockets
246:Market acceptance
209:British Standards
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111:Certifying agency
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755:(European Union)
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34:This article
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691:bsigroup.com
686:kitemark.com
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647:. Retrieved
644:Daily Mirror
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596:25 September
594:. Retrieved
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533:. Retrieved
528:The Guardian
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504:. Retrieved
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436:. Retrieved
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411:. Retrieved
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381:UKCA marking
279:Balustrading
261:
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234:Availability
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189:
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169:
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147:Legal status
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51:Please help
35:
18:
300:EV Chargers
1029:Trademarks
1013:Categories
749:(PR China)
741:Blue Angel
649:13 January
506:12 January
497:"Kitemark"
438:12 January
413:12 January
390:References
375:CE marking
177:trade mark
69:April 2016
53:improve it
43:verifiable
991:ETL SEMKO
960:Sugarwise
923:Silk Mark
819:Lion mark
773:(Ukraine)
761:(Belgium)
743:(Germany)
669:BSI Group
591:BSI Group
573:BSI Group
555:BSI Group
483:BSI Group
433:BSI Group
408:BSI Group
240:BSI Group
193:benchmark
181:BSI Group
115:BSI Group
57:citations
993:(Sweden)
975:Woolmark
845:(Russia)
833:(Mexico)
827:(Norway)
813:Kitemark
767:(Canada)
531:. London
351:See also
170:Kitemark
150:Advisory
94:Kitemark
887:Ecomark
843:Rostest
809:(Japan)
801:JAC ANZ
535:16 June
324:Ladders
203:History
155:Website
142:Various
47:neutral
999:(USSR)
925:(silk)
907:(food)
901:(food)
875:Agmark
789:G-mark
253:YouGov
899:FSSAI
867:India
825:NEMKO
759:CEBEC
479:(PDF)
312:Glass
309:Fuses
855:UKNI
849:UKCA
795:GOST
771:DSTU
651:2023
598:2019
537:2016
508:2023
440:2023
415:2023
168:The
134:1903
45:and
965:TÜV
955:SGS
911:ISI
893:FPO
881:BIS
837:RMC
831:NOM
807:JIS
783:FCC
777:EAC
765:CSA
747:CCC
183:).
59:to
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753:CE
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
