Types of batteries

BattG differentiates 3 battery types: Automotive, industrial, portable batteries.

  • Automotive batteries are batteries used for automotive starter, lighting or ignition power of vehicles. Vehicles are land vehicles powered by engines without being bound to rails (§ 2 paragraph  4 BattG).
  • Industrial batteries are batteries exclusively determined for industrial, professional, or farming uses, for electric vehicles of every kind or for propulsion of hybrid vehicles. Automotive batteries are not industrial batteries (§ 2 paragraph  5 clause 1 and 2 BattG). Accumulators for electric bikes and pedelecs are therefore industrial batteries. 
  • Portable batteries are batteries that are sealed  and can be hand-carried  . Automotive and industrial batteries are not portable batteries (§ 2 paragraph  6 BattG). Button cells are a special kind of portable battery. Button cells are small, round portable batteries, the diameter of which is larger than their height (§ 2 paragraph 6 BattG).

For batteries that are neither automotive, industrial, nor portable batteries, the regulations on industrial batteries apply (§ 2 paragraph  5 clause 3 BattG).

The following decision tree serves to differentiate the individual types of batteries. It applies to batteries that are within the  scope of the law: