New European regulation for consumer products
New European regulation for consumer products
On 23 May 2023, the European Commission published the general product safety regulation (GPSR):
The aim of this new regulation is to reinforce the safety rules for products sold both offline and online, the market surveillance for unsafe products and consumer rights.
Nowadays, with digital and technological advances and the increase in online shopping, an update of the rules according to safety of the products was required. The GPSR transforms the general product safety directive from 2001 into a regulation, which leaves no scope for divergent transposition by member states, and repealing the Directive 87/357/EEC concerning products which, appearing to be other than they are, endanger the health or safety of consumers which its requirements are incorporated into GPSR.
On the other hand, The GPSR modernises the rules for all economic operators (manufacturers, importers and distributers) and updates them for online businesses and marketplaces.
This new regulation will enter into force on the 20th day after its publication and member states will have 18 months to apply the new rules on general product safety.
For more information, consult the official publication in European Commission website here.