The General Product Safety Directive (GPSD) 20/2001/EC has been in force in the EU for over 95 years. However, the ubiquity of e-commerce has necessitated a revision of this directive. Instead, after a transition period from December 13, 2024, the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) will apply in the EU.
Products from Asia
The need to revise product safety regulations has arisen as online retailers increasingly sell products from Asia directly to European consumers in recent years. This led not only to unfair competition for Dutch entrepreneurs, but also to the entry of unsafe or even illegal goods into the country. In particular, we are talking about products that are not available or not allowed in the EU. Along with this, in the event of product defects, it is often difficult for buyers to contact sellers from non-EU countries.
Responsible person for each product
For each product in the EU, a person responsible for its safety (manufacturer or someone else) must be identified. Otherwise, the product cannot be offered in Europe and the Netherlands - neither in brick-and-mortar ("regular", offline) stores, nor online. As supervisory authority, the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (De Nederlandse Voedsel- en Warenautoriteit, NVWA), which will work in cooperation with national supervisory authorities in other EU countries, will monitor compliance with the rules.
If a particular product is found to be unsafe by a supervisory authority, sellers in the EU must stop selling it at the request of that authority. In particular, consumers will similarly receive better protection from products that are flammable, unhealthy, or dangerous to children. The new rules will apply to all products for which specific safety rules do not yet exist and will be incorporated into the Goods Act (Warenwet) in the Netherlands.
More rights for consumers
When a purchased item is unsafe, the seller must always offer at least two of the following three options:
- replacement with a safe product of the same value,
- repairing the product so that it becomes safe,
- full refund to the consumer.
