International Consumer Research & Testing Ltd
ICRT is an association of 40 consumer organisations from 37 countries, mostly in Europe but also further afield eg. Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong. Its principal aim is to promote co-operation in consumer research and testing among its members and other organisations concerned with consumer matters. ICRT also aims to develop better test methods for consumer goods and services and to encourage the development of good consumer testing facilities.
Membership of ICRT is open to organisations that carry out consumer research and testing, provided they act exclusively in the interest of consumers, do not take advertising and are independent of commerce, industry or political parties.
Each year around 100 joint tests are carried out, of which over thirty have participants in five or more organisations. The results of these projects are published in the national consumer magazines of the participating countries and some are taken-up and published by consumer organisations on a world-wide basis.
ICRT has a programme of regular joint tests on a wide range of popular consumer products. The most successful joint tests are those carried out on products that have an international market, such as photographic and audio equipment. There is also active c-operation in tests on cars and car accessories; computers and telecommunications equipment; DIY equipment (e.g. electric drills and attachments); domestic appliances (e.g. refrigerators and freezers, steam irons and vacuum cleaners) and video equipment (e.g. colour TV, video cassette recorders and video cameras). In addition there are numerous smaller joint tests with two or three partners, on a whole gamut of consumer products from lipsticks to barbecues.
ICRT has also carried out important projects involving members in the European Union with part-funding from the European Commission. These include projects on safety: (leisure centres; playgrounds; nightclubs; and baby walkers); a pan-European Camera and Camcorder Guide; and parallel tests on food safety topics (nitrates in vegetables; hormones in meat; ready-to-eat meals; chicken meat and chicken products; fresh and frozen fish and coated fish products; cooked ham; and fortified food).
ICRT members are also actively engaged in research into a wide range of services such as financial services, telecommunications, transport, and public utilities.
Safety has always been a topic of concern to consumer organisations. ICRT members have played a key role in promoting higher safety standards for consumer goods and have been closely involved with work on the secondary safety of cars and with the work of the European New Car Assessment Programme (EuroNCAP) and on impact characteristics of cars. Tests on protective equipment such as crash helmets, car safety restraints for children, toys and childrens’ equipment are reported regularly in the consumer magazines and have often resulted in unsafe goods being withdrawn from the market or in defective products being improved.
Most ICRT members are from Europe, but consumer organisations from other countries are welcome provided they fulfil the membership criteria. ICRT liaises closely with the two other main international consumer organisations: BEUC (Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs), to which a majority of ICRT’s European members also belong and Consumers International, to which ICRT has an affiliate membership.
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