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Consultancy - Services:
EU Legislation - the new General Product
Safety Directive
The revised General Product Safety Directive is currently under consultation, and is
expected to come into force in January 2005 as a Statutory Instrument in the UK. The
history of the Directive can be traced back to 1992.
General Product Safety Directive (1992/59/EEC)
The directive first came into force in 1992, and was intended as a "catch-all",
that would cover products that are not already included in other Directives. It gives
consumers added confidence that all products placed on the market should be safe. However,
the directive did not cover food, and also second hand, reconditioned or imported goods.
The Directive did not last long, but was a step forward.
The new Directive (2001/95/EEC)
A revised version of the original Directive was approved in 2001. This was called the new
Directive (2001/95/EEC). There were a number of reasons for this new version:
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- Many social and economic changes took place very quickly in the 1990s. These needed to
be taken into account.
- Many new, complicated products came on the market.
- New ways of buying things developed, like Internet and distance selling.
- There were some parts of the Directive that were hard to understand and therefore to
enforce.
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The following are some of the new benefits to consumers of the new Directive:
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- Clearer and more understandable information and warnings on dangerous products are
given. This means that you can work out the particular risks you run.
- Special attention concentrates on people who are most at risk such as children and old
people.
- A clearer definition is given of what a product actually is. The Directive now covers
products like laser pens, chain saws, paints and pesticides which were originally intended
for the professional market but are now widely used in the home.
- The responsibilities of producers and retailers for withdrawing dangerous products from
shops are greater. These are described more clearly. They must also recall dangerous
products that have already been bought and used.
- Products bought in the EU by mail order or through the Internet are included.
- Better enforcement of the law will be possible because manufacturers and suppliers will
now have to tell their national authorities (like trading standards departments in the
UK)) what they are doing to prevent unacceptable risks to consumers.
- A more effective rapid information exchange (RAPEX) in emergency situations in the EU
will take place. National authorities will work together to warn of dangerous products
that can move from one country to another.
- There will be a strengthening of European standards to make sure that products conform
to safety requirements and to provide better guidelines for manufacturers.
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Created By Brett Walton
For more information about how Wemtech can help, please contact Mike Foster on 01527
595066.
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