Stiftung Warentest
Encyclopedia
Stiftung Warentest is a German consumer organisation and foundation involved in investigating and comparing goods and services in an unbiased way. It was founded on 4th. December 1964 by the Federal Republic of Germany
as an independent foundation under civil law. It is based in Berlin
.
Due to its very well known and established reputation as an independent and reliable organization, the foundation has a considerable influence on the buying behavior of consumers. Good ratings and verdicts are often given great prominence in product advertising and on product packaging. In contrast, bad ratings and verdicts frequently lead to a decline in sales and thus sometimes legal action against SW by the manufacturers. According to SW, they are sued ten times a year. The foundation has never actually been ordered by the courts to pay compensation and usually wins any legal action taken against it.
(251,000), books and special magazine issues, and also investigation results as paid-for content on its own website. Sales revenues in 2009 totalled approximately € 38.8 million.
The foundation also receives a small subsidy of € 6 million from the Federal Ministry of Nutrition, Agriculture and Consumer Protection. This is compensation for the fact that it does not carry any advertisements in its publications because this could compromise its independence.
Market researchers and scientific staff are employed by Stiftung Warentest with the responsibility for selecting the products and services and the carrying out of the investigations. Each investigation project must be approved of by the Advisory Council and discussed at a meeting with advisory experts representing consumers, industry, manufacturers / retailers and providers, as well as independent experts.
The investigations are not actually carried out by Stiftung Warentest's staff members themselves, but by independent external test institutes worldwide. Test samples are purchased anonymously in shops and not provided by the manufacturers.
After the tests and the evaluations have been completed, but before publication, details of the objective results are sent to the respective manufacturers and providers for verification and so that they can make their comments. Journalists then summarise the investigation results in a form which makes them easier to read and understand. Staff members who are specifically responsible for verification make sure the published reports and investigation results concur.
Up until December 2009, Stiftung Warentest had already published information about 4,915 investigations covering more than 84,750 products and 1,644 services.
, the successor of Roland Hüttenrauch
. The Supervisory Board, which has seven members, is responsible for appointing the Executive Board and also supervising its activities. The Advisory Council, with 18 members, advises the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board on all issues of fundamental importance.
Editor-in-chief of test ist Hubertus Primus
, and editor-in-chief of Finanztest
is Hermann-Josef Tenhagen
.
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
as an independent foundation under civil law. It is based in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
.
Aims and importance
Stiftung Warentest has an important role in two main areas. On the one hand it has the task of comparing objective aspects such as usefulness, functionality and environmental impact, and on the other hand it has the mission of educating consumers so they can learn how to make best use of the income available to them and behave in a health promoting and environmentally aware way.Due to its very well known and established reputation as an independent and reliable organization, the foundation has a considerable influence on the buying behavior of consumers. Good ratings and verdicts are often given great prominence in product advertising and on product packaging. In contrast, bad ratings and verdicts frequently lead to a decline in sales and thus sometimes legal action against SW by the manufacturers. According to SW, they are sued ten times a year. The foundation has never actually been ordered by the courts to pay compensation and usually wins any legal action taken against it.
Financing
Stiftung Warentest is self-financing, selling its own magazines test (annual circulation on average 509,000 copies) and FinanztestFinanztest
Finanztest is a consumer magazine which focuses on providing objective information about financial services. Together with test it is one of the two main publications of Stiftung Warentest, the German foundation and consumer organisation.-General background:Finanztest was first published in 1991...
(251,000), books and special magazine issues, and also investigation results as paid-for content on its own website. Sales revenues in 2009 totalled approximately € 38.8 million.
The foundation also receives a small subsidy of € 6 million from the Federal Ministry of Nutrition, Agriculture and Consumer Protection. This is compensation for the fact that it does not carry any advertisements in its publications because this could compromise its independence.
Investigation work
Stiftung Warentest carries out more than 200 comparative product tests and investigations of services from nearly all areas of everyday life every year. Since 2002, products and services on special limited offer, mainly by the discount retailer chains, have also been investigated every week and the results quickly published. Aspects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) have been a part of the investigations of some specified products since 2004. There is also a section on investigated medication ("Medikamente im Test"), which provides information about more than 9000 medicines and 175 areas of application.Market researchers and scientific staff are employed by Stiftung Warentest with the responsibility for selecting the products and services and the carrying out of the investigations. Each investigation project must be approved of by the Advisory Council and discussed at a meeting with advisory experts representing consumers, industry, manufacturers / retailers and providers, as well as independent experts.
The investigations are not actually carried out by Stiftung Warentest's staff members themselves, but by independent external test institutes worldwide. Test samples are purchased anonymously in shops and not provided by the manufacturers.
After the tests and the evaluations have been completed, but before publication, details of the objective results are sent to the respective manufacturers and providers for verification and so that they can make their comments. Journalists then summarise the investigation results in a form which makes them easier to read and understand. Staff members who are specifically responsible for verification make sure the published reports and investigation results concur.
Up until December 2009, Stiftung Warentest had already published information about 4,915 investigations covering more than 84,750 products and 1,644 services.
Investigation results on the website
Stiftung Warentest's website has all the investigation results going back to the start of 2000, as well as current news, special online articles, an interactive calculator and free short versions of between eight and ten investigations per month. Downloading information costs between 75 cents and € 2.50 for detailed investigation results, and a maximum of € 5 for comprehensive product databases.Verdicts
The classification of the evaluation results is based on the marking system used in German schools. This results in the following categories for the overall verdicts on the quality of goods and services:- 0.5–1.5: "very good"
- 1.6–2.5: "good"
- 2.6–3.5: "satisfactory"
- 3.6–4.5: "adequate"
- 4.6–5.5: "unsatisfactory"
Organisation
In accordance with its statutes, Stiftung Warentest has its premises in Berlin, and there are three bodies which are responsible for different areas. The Executive Board conducts the foundation's business and represents it in and out of court. It comprises just one person at the present time, namely Werner BrinkmannWerner Brinkmann
Werner Brinkmann is the Executive Director and sole member of the Board of Stiftung Warentest, the German foundation and consumer organisation, which was established in 1964.-Early life and education:...
, the successor of Roland Hüttenrauch
Roland Hüttenrauch
Roland Johannes Hüttenrauch was in charge of Stiftung Warentest, the German consumer organisation in Berlin from 1967 to 1994....
. The Supervisory Board, which has seven members, is responsible for appointing the Executive Board and also supervising its activities. The Advisory Council, with 18 members, advises the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board on all issues of fundamental importance.
Editor-in-chief of test ist Hubertus Primus
Hubertus Primus
Hubertus Primus is a lawyer, journalist and manager. At the present time he is the Editor-in-Chief of the magazine test and a member of the Management Board of Stiftung Warentest, the German consumer organisation....
, and editor-in-chief of Finanztest
Finanztest
Finanztest is a consumer magazine which focuses on providing objective information about financial services. Together with test it is one of the two main publications of Stiftung Warentest, the German foundation and consumer organisation.-General background:Finanztest was first published in 1991...
is Hermann-Josef Tenhagen
Hermann-Josef Tenhagen
Hermann-Josef Tenhagen is the Editor-in-Chief of Finanztest, the German monthly magazine dealing with financial issues published by Stiftung Warentest, the German consumer organisation....
.
Prominent cases
- In April 2004, a facial creamCosmeticsCosmetics are substances used to enhance the appearance or odor of the human body. Cosmetics include skin-care creams, lotions, powders, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail and toe nail polish, eye and facial makeup, towelettes, permanent waves, colored contact lenses, hair colors, hair sprays and...
marketed by German actress Uschi GlasUschi GlasUschi Glas is a German film and television actress.Born in Landau, Bavaria, Glas started appearing in films in 1965...
received a devastating rating, because the cream caused pimples and rash for people with sensitive skin, and the producer sued the foundation. In April 2005 the suit was turned down by the Landgericht BerlinLandgericht BerlinThe Landgericht Berlin is the regional court of Berlin, divided into two divisions for civil and criminal cases. In the German court hierarchy, it is above the eleven local courts of the city and below the Kammergericht...
court. - In January 2006, the foundation criticized the safety of several stadiums to be used in the 2006 World Cup2006 FIFA World CupThe 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
.
Cooperation with other institutions
Joint international investigations are generally carried out with members of the umbrella organisation "International Consumers Research and Testing" (ICRT), which is based in London. Thereby Stiftung Warentest is often responsible for the project supervision. In addition to Stiftung Warentest, the most important partner organisations include:- Consumentenbond, The Hague, the Netherlands
- Consumers UnionConsumers UnionConsumers Union is a non-profit organization best known as the publisher of Consumer Reports, based in the United States. Its mission is to "test products, inform the public, and protect consumers."...
, Yonkers, USA - Test Achats / EuroconsumersEuroconsumersEuroconsumers: Consumer Organization in Europe, previously known as Conseur - European Consumers, is a private independent and non-profit organization that works in Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Brazil....
, Brussels, Belgium - Union Fédérale des Consommateurs, Paris, France
- Which?Which?Which? is a product-testing and consumer campaigning charity with a magazine, website and various other services run by Which? Ltd ....
, London, Great Britain.