PRODUCT SAFETY - Parliament/Council Conciliation Committee - Agreements on General Product Safety

The agreement will have to be confirmed by an absolute majority of the votes cast in the case of the Parliament and by a qualified majority in the Council - subject to which the acts will be definitely adopted.

Background to the Directive

This Directive, which amends Directive 92/59/EEC on general product safety (GPS) adopted in June 1992, introduces clearer and more efficient rules designed to ensure that only safe products are placed on the market.

Aims and scope of the Directive

The overall aim is to harmonise the measures of the Member States aimed at imposing a general obligation to market only safe products, to ensure both a consistent and high level of protection of consumer health and safety throughout the EC and the proper functioning of the internal market.

The products covered are those intended for consumers or likely to be used by consumers, supplied in the course of a commercial activity or the provision of a service. This includes new, used and reconditioned products, with the exception of antiques and products sold with a view to being reconditioned before use, provided that the supplier informs the consumer of this fact.

Therefore, the Directive is intended as a complement to sectoral Community legislation to:

• cover products which are not subject to sectoral legislation;
• also cover products that are subject to sectoral legislation (existing and forthcoming), for the categories of risks, safety aspects and administrative and control requirements which are not addressed in such sectoral legislation.

The main new obligations are as follows:

• obligations for producers to effectively warn consumers of the risks posed by those products already supplied to them, and when necessary and as a last resort recall such products in order to avoid such risks;
• obligations for distributors to collaborate in tracing of the products they supply and to co-operate in any risk avoidance action;
• obligations for producers and distributors to inform the competent authorities if they conclude that a product which they supply is dangerous, and to collaborate at their request in taking action to avoid any risks posed by the products they supply.

Finally, in individual cases, the proposal bans the export to non-Member States of dangerous products subject to a Community decision prohibiting them from being placed on the Community market or which have been withdrawn from the market.