EN ISO 20471:2013
High visibility clothing

The standard specifies requirements and test methods for high visibility clothing, which are intended to make the user visible in all high-risk situations, regardless of lighting conditions.

Design requirements

The standard requires that Hi-Vis workwear be uniformly designed. This will take into account the placement of reflective strips and fluorescent material. The requirements depend on which parts of the body the garment is to cover (torso only, torso and arms, torso and legs, legs only, or garments covering torso, arms andlegs). Reflective strips and fluorescent material must be evenly distributed on the front and back of the garment, with a maximum deviation of + 10%.

Textile requirements

The requirement for the fluorescent textile is that it must retain its fluorescent properties also after a certain number of washing cycles. For the textile in contrasting colour, there is a requirement for colour fastness. For the reflective material, there is a requirement that it must retain its reflective properties also after washing.The table shows the minimum area per garment for fluorescent textile and reflective material, measured in m2.

Textile class 3

Fluorescent material: 0.80
Reflective material: 0.20

Textile class 2

Fluorescent material: 0.50
Reflective material: 0.13

Textile class 1

Fluorescent material: 0.14
Reflective material: 0.10

USER INFORMATION

Class 3 is the highest class. All Class 3 garments must cover the torso and have a minimum of either long sleeves or long trouser legs with reflective material/strips. Several garments can be certified together as a combination, such as jacket and trousers, to achieve a higher class. This is stated on the washing label on the garment. The fluorescent and reflective parts of the garments must not be covered by other garments when used. Please note that the size of the logo or embroidery may affect the certification class of the garment.