On the label, the consumers can see the expected amount of electricity consumed by a product under standard conditions.3 min read Last Updated : Jul 22 2024 | 10:21 AM IST The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) on Sunday cautioned consumers against a frost-free refrigerator variant sold by Godrej, highlighting that the product did not meet the advertised star-based energy rating standards. In an advertisement issued across major national daily, the government body notified that “Godrej Frost Free Refrigerator model: RT EONVIBE 366C fails for three-star rating.” “This notice has been issued in compliance with the provision of Regulation 7 of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (Particulars - Manners of their display on labels of frost-free refrigerators) regulations, 2009,” the notice read. The BEE is a statutory body under the Ministry of Power.

In a bid to provide consumers with informed choice energy savings, it mandates a ‘Standards - Labelling (S-L) program’ that lays down the guidelines for the minimum energy performance standards for various electronic appliances. The energy rating of any appliance measures between one and five, with five being the most energy-efficient level.

This impacts the final value of the product as energy-efficient products are costlier. At present the S-L program covers 34 appliances of which 14 are in the mandatory phase.

All frost-free refrigerators fall under this category, according to the BEE. To check the compliance of the prescribed labelling, the bureau carries out checks on these appliances, the BEE explained. How to read an energy star rating label? The red-yellow performance label on the appliances, shaped like an upside down ‘U’, can be easily checked by the consumers to ensure the performance of the model matches with what is advertised. On the label, the consumers can see the expected amount of electricity consumed by a product under standard conditions.

Other information such as the applicable date of said standard, model variant, brand, and storage are also available on the label. Consumers must take note that the label period prescribed on the sticker is crucial as the rating standard is applicable only during the said interval.

These standards are revised with time, the BEE said. For instance, the energy rating of Star 4 for frost-free refrigerators during 2012-13 was comparable to a Star 2 rating in 2014-15. How to check the authenticity of star energy labels? The BEE provides the consumers with two ways of self-checking the authenticity of the prescribed labels. They can either visit the BEE website or download their mobile application: ‘BEE Star Label’. On the home page, one may click ‘search and compare’; choose the appliance; select model number, storage, brand and other information and hit submit to fetch the details related to the expected energy consumption levels for a certain star rating standard on a particular model and its validity.First Published: Jul 22 2024 | 10:20 AMIST