The new General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) comes into force on 13.12.2024. This update particularly addresses the digital and technological developments that now exist in the retail sector.
Important for online retailers
The new changes will be particularly important for online retailers who offer so-called consumer products within the meaning of the Product Safety Act. According to Section 2 No. 25 of the Product Safety Act, a consumer product is a new, used or remanufactured product that is intended for consumers or can be used by consumers under conditions that are reasonably foreseeable, even if it is not intended for them; a product that is made available to the consumer as part of a service is also considered a consumer product.
However, this does not include medicinal products for human and veterinary use, foodstuffs and animal feed, live plants and animals, animal by-products and derived products, plant protection products, means of transport and aircraft and antiques.
''Fulfillment service provider'' includes
The personal scope of application now also includes so-called "fulfillment service providers" (service providers for warehousing, shipping or packaging, for example) and providers of online marketplaces. In addition, a new system will be implemented in the Product Safety Regulation to regulate the assessment of product safety.
Article 6 of the Regulation now defines the following criteria for assessing the safety of products:
- Properties of the product (appearance, technical characteristics, composition, packaging)
- Interaction with other products
- Presentation of the product (labeling, age marking and warnings, for safe use, disposal)
- Appearance of the product that tempts the consumer to use the product in a way other than that intended by the manufacturer
- Cybersecurity features If required by the nature of the product, the evolving, learning and predictive functionsIn addition to the obligations contained in the previous directives, Art. 9 now requires manufacturers to carry out an internal risk analysis for each product and prepare technical documentation, which must be kept and updated for at least 10 years after the product has been placed on the market. Another far-reaching change for online retailers is that products sold online must now contain the following clear and clearly visible information in accordance with Art. 19 of the regulation:
- the name, registered trade name or trademark of the manufacturer as well as the postal address and an electronic address (e-mail address or Internet address) at which he can be contacted
- if the manufacturer is not based in the EU, the name, address and e-mail address of the person responsible
- Information that enables the identification of the product, including the image of the product, its type and other product identifiers
- any warnings or safety information required by this Regulation or by the applicable Union harmonization legislation in a language easily understood by consumers and provided on the product, on its packaging or in accompanying documents.
There is a threat of offers being blocked
If the seller has not provided the necessary information for their consumer product on a platform in accordance with Art. 19, the offer on the platform may be blocked. In particular, a longer block may also be imposed in accordance with Art. 22 (11) of the Regulation. However, according to Art. 22 Para. 9, online marketplaces must provide an interface so that the relevant information according to Art. 19 can be stored there.
Conclusion
In summary, it can be said that the far-reaching changes now regulate the responsibility of fulfillment service providers and providers of online marketplaces and that consumer protection is to be further enforced, making it particularly advisable for online retailers to seek expert advice when it comes to the specific implementation of the new Product Safety Regulation for online offers. We will be happy to help you with this.
