ISO 25649-4:2024

Overview

ISO 25649-4:2024 - "Floating leisure articles for use on and in the water - Part 4" - specifies additional safety requirements and test methods for Class B floating leisure articles. It applies to devices that provide a buoyant structure with one or more body openings where the user is positioned partly immersed, whether buoyancy is by inflation or inherently buoyant materials. Examples include swim seats, floating rings with interior seat segments, fantasy-shaped float toys with body openings, and floatation devices with leg slits. The 2024 edition is a technical revision of the 2017 standard and is part of the ISO 25649 series.

Key topics and technical requirements

ISO 25649-4:2024 covers a comprehensive set of product-safety and test provisions, including:

• Scope and classification - definition of Class B devices and subtypes (B1 and B2) based on body support and fit.
• Sizing requirements - methods to size devices to intended user groups; test probes and anthropometric references (e.g., child test subjects: 5 y/25 kg/126 cm and 9 y/38 kg/149 cm).
• Strength of entire device - structural integrity tests for Class B1 devices to verify durability under load.
• In‑water performance - static and dynamic stability tests, including capsizing scenarios, residual buoyancy and retention of function after damage, and escape tests for body entrapment and leg/foot entanglement.
• Test loads - guidance on representative loads (note: the document uses 75% of body weight of the heaviest foreseeable user when determining immersed-body loads).
• Child testing and manikin alternatives - Annex A provides optional manikin test specifications to complement or substitute human child tests for reproducibility.
• Consumer information - mandatory product, packaging and instruction requirements for safe use, assembly, maintenance and warnings.
• Exclusions and examples - Annex B provides typical Class B product examples and the document clarifies what is out of scope.

Practical applications

This standard is intended to reduce hazards such as capsizing, entrapment and drowning by prescribing objective test methods and information requirements. Typical applications include:

• Design and development of pool toys, swim seats and recreational floats
• Product verification and conformity testing in laboratories
• Quality assurance and risk assessment by manufacturers and suppliers
• Safety compliance checks by retailers, pool operators and regulators
• Guidance for repair, labeling and user instructions

Who should use ISO 25649-4:2024

• Manufacturers and designers of floating leisure articles (Class B devices)
• Test laboratories and conformity assessment bodies performing safety and in‑water tests
• Product safety engineers, pool and leisure facility managers, and regulators responsible for public safety
• Retailers and importers verifying labeling and consumer information

Related standards

• ISO 25649-1:2024 - classification and general requirements for floating leisure articles
• EN 13138-3:2021 - related requirements for very young children (referenced for Class B1 products under 36 months)

Keywords: ISO 25649-4:2024, Class B devices, floating leisure articles, safety requirements, test methods, swim seats, in‑water performance, entrapment, capsizing, consumer information.