No need to panic buy powerful vacuum cleaners, retailers tell worried shoppers

Consumers have been warned against panic buying in a rush to stock up on powerful vacuum cleaners before they are outlawed next week by new EU legislation, as retailers reported soaring sales of the appliances.

Online electrical retailer ao.com reported its best ever day for vacuum cleaner sales last Friday as customers picked up a model with a power rating above 1,600 watts before they are banned by the EU.

Overall, it said, sales were up 40% last week on the same period last year, driven in particular by sales of cylinder models.

Tesco said sales had risen by a corresponding 44% over the past two weeks as customers rushed to snap up the most popular 2,000 watt models. The Co-operative Electrical shop reported a similar rise of 38%.

A new EU energy label, to be introduced from 1 September means manufacturers will not be able to make or import vacuum cleaners with a motor that exceeds 1,600 watts. The wattage will be limited to 900 watts by 2017. Current cleaners typically have an average of 1,800 watts.

The consumer group Which? urged shoppers to buy the more powerful models while they still could, saying “if you’re in the market for a powerful vacuum, you should act quickly, before all of the models currently available sell out”.

But ao.com warned shoppers not to panic-buy, saying retailers can still sell the old models indefinitely (while stocks last) and provided it is not new stock being brought into the UK after the cut-off date next Monday.

Leanne Beswick, head of small domestic appliances at ao.com, said: “We have seen a significant surge in sales of corded vacuums of at least 1600 watts over the last week as the deadline for meeting new EU legislation looms on 1 September. However, consumers need not panic buy. Even though these particular models will eventually be off the market, this doesn’t mean that new and other existing models are any less effective – they are not.”

She said consumers should also be aware that the only clause in the legislation regarding the removal of these models from the market was that manufacturers could no longer import these vacuums into the UK, explaining: “If there are models already in manufacturers’ warehouses, and they can prove this, they are well within their rights to continue selling them to retailers. This means that as long as there is stock in the supply chain, we can continue to sell higher wattage cleaners until stock runs out. So there’s no need to rush.”