The third attempt was the right one: negotiators from the European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached a provisional political agreement on the evening of Monday 28 November, on the proposed EU regulation of June 2021 on the general safety of non-food products (the so-called ‘GPSR’) in the digital age.
The text, agreed after a third ‘trilogue’, aims to update EU rules by replacing an outdated 2001 directive to ensure that only safe products can be made available to consumers, both online and in shops, from within the EU or third countries, taking into account the risks of new technologies.
“This regulation will help to reduce the number of dangerous products sold both offline and online in the EU market, including in online marketplaces. Consumers will be better protected and will also be entitled to a refund or replacement if they have purchased an unsafe product”, welcomed the Czech Minister of Industry and Trade, Jozef Síkela.
“Products will be safer in general, but more importantly, unsafe products will be removed more quickly, including from online markets. These are concrete benefits for our citizens”, welcomed the chief negotiator for the European Parliament, Dita Charanzová (Renew Europe, Czech).
Responsible person. According to the agreed rules, a product can only be sold if there is an economic operator (such as the manufacturer, importer or distributor) established in the EU, who is responsible for its safety. The responsible person will be charged with verifying that there is technical documentation for the products that they are responsible for offering by the economic operator and that the products are accompanied by instructions and safety information.
The GPSR introduces obligations for online markets, such as those set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA), including the designation of a single point of contact for national supervisory authorities and consumers.
Online marketplaces. They will need to ensure that they know which merchants are operating on their platforms and what products they are offering.
If they detect a dangerous product on their platform, they will have to cooperate with the market surveillance authorities. To this end, they will be required to establish a single point of contact responsible for product safety.
National supervisory authorities will be able to order online marketplaces to remove or disable access to offers of unsafe products without undue delay and, in any case, within two working days. Providers of online marketplaces shall make reasonable efforts to randomly check for dangerous products.
If a product has been found to be unsafe, economic operators will be obliged to take immediate corrective action and to inform market surveillance authorities and consumers.
Product recalls and increased consumer protection
In the event of a recall or safety warning, traders and online marketplaces will now be obliged to inform any affected consumers they can identify and to disseminate the information widely. Recall notices should avoid phrases that may diminish consumer perception of risk (e.g. ‘voluntary’, ‘precautionary’, ‘in rare/specific situations’).
Consumers will be clearly informed of their right to an adequate repair, replacement or refund (at least equal to the original price).
Wherever possible, economic operators should ensure that consumers can choose between at least two of these options.
Consumers will also have the right to file complaints or take collective action.
The online rapid alert system for dangerous products (Safety Gate) will be modernised to enable more effective detection of dangerous products and will be more accessible to disabled people, as requested by the European Parliament.
The European Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, welcomed the political agreement, saying that the future regulation “will ensure a level playing field for all companies selling to EU consumers, set clear rules for all companies and allow authorities to better enforce the law”.
The provisional political agreement still needs to be confirmed by the EU Council and the European Parliament before the regulation can be formally adopted. It will apply 18 months after its entry into force. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)