The General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) in the European Union (EU) is legislation aimed at ensuring that consumer products sold within the EU are safe for use, regardless of where they are manufactured. It provides a framework for assessing product safety, setting responsibilities for producers, importers, and distributors to safeguard consumers. Here’s a breakdown of its key components and purpose:
The GPSR aims to ensure product safety. All consumer products must meet specific safety standards to protect public health and reduce the risk of harm. Also to fill gaps in sector-specific regulations. The GPSR covers any consumer product that isn’t already regulated by specific EU safety legislation (e.g., food and pharmaceuticals have separate regulations). The GPSR harmonises safety requirements across the EU, ensuring that consumers across all member states are protected by the same basic standards.
The regulation outlines the obligations for various actors involved in the supply chain such as producers, importers and distributors. Producers must design, manufacture, and test products to ensure they are safe before placing them on the market. They are also required to provide clear instructions for safe use and recall any dangerous products.
Importers are responsible for verifying that imported products meet EU safety standards, especially if they’re produced outside the EU. Distributors are expected to monitor product safety, inform authorities if safety issues arise, and participate in product recalls if necessary.
The GPSR emphasises market surveillance to ensure that unsafe products are quickly identified and removed from the market. Each EU member state is required to have an authority responsible for monitoring product safety, investigating complaints, and enforcing compliance through measures such as product recalls, corrective actions, and fines and penalties for non-compliance.
The RAPEX system, part of the GPSR, enables quick communication between EU member states about dangerous non-food products. It allows authorities to swiftly coordinate product recalls and ensure that potentially harmful products are taken off the market across the EU.
Under the GPSR, consumers have the right to be informed about product risks, with clear labelling, invariably using booklet labels, showing warnings, and usage instructions provided. This includes the right to know if a product has been recalled and what steps to take if they own a dangerous product. The EU is currently modernising the GPSR to address emerging challenges, particularly with the rise of e-commerce and imported products from outside the EU. These updates aim to enhance consumer safety, increase the responsibilities of online marketplaces, and streamline recall processes.
The EU’s General Product Safety Regulation serves as a foundational law to ensure that consumer products across the EU are safe, emphasising accountability, transparency, and cooperation among all stakeholders in the supply chain. Through robust surveillance and a unified standard for safety, it plays a key role in protecting consumers and fostering trust in the EU marketplace.
