General Product Safety

The General Product Safety Regulations 1994 apply to a wide range of products that are not covered by specific safety legislation. Both new and second-hand products are covered. Where specific national safety regulations apply only to new products, the General Product Safety Regulations will apply when those products are supplied second-hand. These regulations will also apply in circumstances where the specific legislation exists but fails to deal with all of the safety aspects of a product.

Which products are covered?

• "Products" within the meaning of the regulations can best be described as goods that are supplied to consumers for their private use. Those covered include, but are not restricted to, clothing, medicines, primary agricultural and horticultural products, DIY tools and equipment, fireworks supplied to consumers, food and drink, household goods, nursery goods, chemicals and pesticides, and motor vehicles. Although the product coverage is wide, most will already be subject to national safety requirements. Only such goods supplied in the course of a commercial activity- which includes a business and a trade - are covered (private sales are outside the scope of the regulations).

Which products are excluded?

The following are outside the scope of the regulations:

• Products that are used in the provision of a service (even if they're used for, or by, consumers). Examples are escalators in a shopping centre, shopping trolleys provided by a supermarket for the use of consumers, or a cleaning product used as part of a car valet service and which would not otherwise be available to consumers.
  
• Second-hand products that are antiques.
  
• Products supplied for repair or reconditioning provided the purchaser is clearly informed that they are supplied for repair or reconditioning.
  
• Products for export to a country outside the Community where the goods are exported direct by the UK manufacturer (ie the products are not placed on the Community market) and are not in circulation in the Community before being exported.
  
• Products used only for display at exhibitions or trade fairs. However, such products will be subject to the regulations if they are subsequently made available for supply to consumers.

Which suppliers are affected?

• The regulations apply to all persons in the business supply chain who are established in the UK and supply consumer goods in the UK - whether the goods are intended for consumption in the UK or another Member State. Suppliers therefore include manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, retailers, hirers and, in certain circumstances, letting agents and auctioneers.
  
  Auctioneers are not affected when they are merely acting under instructions to conduct the manner of the sale of an item for the owner, and it is the owner who effects the sale. An auctioneer who had purchased the contents of a house on a clearance basis would be subject to the regulations when he subsequently auctioned the contents. Similarly, an individual who buys goods to sell on a bidding basis (whether from a temporary site of established premises) will come within the ambit of the regulations.

• Producers are either the first placer of the product on the Community market or someone whose activities may affect the safety of the product - a retailer whose activities can affect the safety of a product that he supplies will be classed as a 'producer' in relation to that product.
  
  'Producer' in relation to a particular product means:
  1. the manufacturer (where he is established in the Community);
  2. any person who presents himself as the manufacturer by putting his name or trade mark on the product;
  3. any person who repairs or reconditions the product;or
  4. other professionals in the supply chain if their activities may affect the safety properties of a product after is has been supplied to them.

• If the manufacturer is not established in the Community, the producer will be:
  • either the manufacturer's representative in the Community, or
  • where there is no Community representative, the importer of the product into the Community.
  
  In practice, the requirements of the regulations, as they relate to producers, apply to any of the above persons who are established in the UK.

• Distributors are any professionals in the supply chain whose activities do not affect the safety of a product.

Responsibilities of producers and distributors

• Both producers and distributors have responsibilities to supply only products that are safe and undertake relevant activities, including monitoring, where appropriate, to help ensure that a product remains safe throughout its reasonably foreseeable period of use.

• The regulations require products and distributors to take steps to ensure that the products they supply are safe, to provide consumers with relevant information and warnings, and to keep themselves informed about the risks. It is accepted that the nature and extent of action necessary will vary considerably depending on the product, the risks inherent in its use, and the type of consumer at which it is aimed. In addition, the regulations recognise that a supplier can only act within the limits of his activity.

• Producers must within the limits of their activity:
  
  • provide relevant information to enable consumers to assess the risks inherent in a product throughout the normal or reasonably foreseeable period of its use where such risks are not immediately obvious to the user. This should include information on the precautions to be taken to avoid those risks (for example, the need to wear protective gloves);
  
  
  • adopt measures commensurate with the characteristics of the products supplied, to enable him to be informed of the risks which these products might present and to take appropriate action, including, where necessary, withdrawing the product in question from the distribution chain.
  
  Examples of such measures that may be appropriate are:
  
  • marking products or product batches so that they can be identified (in many cases the manufacturer's normal quality control procedures will mean that batch marking is already in place);
  • sample testing of products on the market;
  • investigating complaints relating to safety;
  • informing distributors of the monitoring work and the results.
  
  The above are not mandatory requirements in every case and which is appropriate to a particular product will be determined by the nature of that product, the group of consumers for whom it is intended and the type of activity in which the producer is engaged. In the case of producers, monitoring may, for a low risk product, consist largely of assessing complaints from consumers. More complex and higher risk products will necessitate a higher level of vigilance and attention from the producer involving an ongoing sample programme.
  
  "Within the limits of his activity" in the above context is considered to refer to the capacity of a person, given his position in the supply chain, to influence the safety of a product.

• Distributors are required to act with due care to help ensure that the products they supply are safe. In particular, he must not supply products that as a professional, he knows or should have presumed, on the basis of information in his possession, to be dangerous.
  
  
  • A distributor is also required, within the limits of his activity to:
    
    
    1. participate in monitoring the safety of products which he supplies;
    2. pass on information on the product risks, in practice this will mean:
       • passing on to consumers information provided by producers about product risks;
       • passing back to producers information on safety related matters that he obtains about the experiences of customers.
    3. co-operate in action to avoid those risks.
  
  "Within the limits of his activity in the above context may be taken to refer to the scale of the distributor's business and the facilities and knowledge available to him. This does not relieve the distributor from passing to consumers all the information the producer intended should accompany a product

What is a safe product?

• A 'safe product' is any product which under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, including duration, presents no risk or only the minimum risk compatible with the product's use and which is consistent with a high level of protection for consumers.
  
  The safety of a product will be assessed having regard to a number of matters and, in particular:
  
  • the product's characteristics;
    
  • packaging;
    
  • instructions for assembly and maintenance, use and disposal;
    
  • the effect on other products with which it might be used;
    
  • labelling and other information provided for the consumer;
    
  • the categories of consumers at serious risk when using the product, particularly children.

• The regulations do not apply to a product that is controlled by a directive that is comprehensive in terms of safety. Where no directive deals with a product, its safety will be assessed by one or other of the methods specified in the regulations. Where a directive deals only with certain aspects of safety, only the remaining aspects will be subject to the regulations. In each case, safety will be assessed according to a hierarchy of measures:
  
  • Products complying with comprehensive UK national safety legislation (ie domestic legislation which does not implement European legislation are safe products for the purpose of the regulations, unless the contrary is proved. Therefore, for many products coming within the scope of the regulations there will be few or no additional safety requirements placed on suppliers.
    
    
  • Where neither a specific Directive nor national safety law applies, safety will be assessed taking into account:
    
    
    1. voluntary European standards;
    2. Community technical specifications;
    3. national standards (ie British Standards which are not UK versions of European standards);
    4. accepted industry codes of good practice;
    5. state of the art and technology,
    6. and the safety which consumers may reasonably expect.
       
       
  • Standards published by the ISO (International Standards Organisation) and the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) are given no special status in the regulations in assessing the safety of products unless they are embodied as European or national standards. However, they should be taken as falling within the general criteria at 3-5 above.

Detailed guidance on the regulations can be found at www.dti.gov.uk/access/safreg94/intro.html.

Regulation of specific products

The following regulations control specific goods. It is advisable to consult the regulations and take legal advice if you intend to manufacture, import or wholesale such goods.

Cooking Utensils (Safety) Regulations 1972
Children's Clothing (Hood Cords) Regulations 1976
Oil Heaters (Safety) Regulations 1977
Aerosol Dispensers (EEC Requirements) Regulations 1977
Filament Lamps for Vehicles (Safety) Regulations 1982
Pedal Bicycles (Safety) Regulations 1984
Gas Catalytic Heaters (Safety) Regulations 1984
Asbestos Products (Safety) Regulations 1985
Nightwear (Safety) Regulations 1985
Bunk Beds (Entrapment Hazards) (Safety) Regulations 1987
Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988
Ceramic Ware (Safety) Regulations 1988
Gas Cooking Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1989
Low Voltage Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1989
All-Terrain Motor Vehicles (Safety) Regulations 1989
Household Appliances (Fireguards) (Safety) Regulations 1991
Gas Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1992
Cigarettes (Maximum Tar Yield) (Safety) Regulations 1992
Tobacco for Oral Use (Safety) Regulations 1992
Active Implantable Medical Devices Regulations 1992
Imitation Dummies (Safety) Regulations 1993
Plugs and Sockets etc (Safety) Regulations 1994
General Product Safety Regulations 1994
Dangerous Substances and Preparations (Safety) (Consolidation) Regulations 1994
Medical Devices Regulations 1994
Motor Vehicle Tyres (Safety) Regulations 1994
Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994
Toys (Safety) Regulations 1995
N-Nitrosamines and N-Nitrosatable Substances in Elastane or Rubber Teats and Dummies (Safety) Regulations 1995
Gas Appliances (Safety) Regulations 1995
Cosmetic Products (Safety) Regulations 1996
Wheeled Child Conveyances (Safety) Regulations 1997
Pencils and Graphic Instruments (Safety) Regulations 1998
Cigarette Lighter Refill (Safety) Regulations 1999
Road Vehicles (Brake Linings) (Safety) Regulations 1999
Dangerous Substances and Preparations (Nickel) (Safety) Regulations 2000

Please Note

This leaflet is not an authoritative interpretation of the law and is intended only for guidance. For further information please contact your local Consumer Protection or Trading Standards office.

Trading Standards Division, 3rd Floor, Wallasey Town Hall, Brighton Street, Wallasey, Wirral CH44 8ED
Telephone: (0151) 691 8020    Fax: (0151) 691 8098
Internet World Wide Web http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/wirral/
Electronic Mail: tradingstandards@wirral.gov.uk