An importer or distributor shall be considered a manufacturer for the purposes of this Regulation and shall be subject to the obligations of a manufacturer under Article 38, where any of the following applies:
(a)
a battery is placed on the market or put into service under that importer’s or distributor’s own name or trademark;
(b)
a battery already placed on the market or put into service is modified by that importer or distributor in such a way that compliance with the relevant requirements of this Regulation could be affected; or
(c)
the purpose of a battery already placed on the market or put into service is modified by that importer or distributor.