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Trade and Industry Department The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Brand Hong Kong - Asia world city
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Commercial Information Circulars

24-hour hotline : 23 922 922

Ref : EIC 230/5/2/2

31 January 2002

Dear Sirs,

Commercial Information Circular No. 23/02

European Union (EU)* : New Directive on General Product Safety

The European Commission (EC) published on 15 January 2002 the new Directive on General Product Safety to replace the one issued in 1992. The new Directive shall take effect from 15 January 2004. A copy of the new Directive (2001/95/EC) is at Annex (pdf format)of this Circular for reference.

DETAILS

  1. The new Directive is introduced to ensure that products placed on the Community market are safe. It reinforces or clarifies some of the provisions in the 1992 Directive in the light of experience as well as new developments on product safety. Major provisions of the Directive are highlighted as follows

    Scope and definitions

    1. "Product" means any product, including in the context of providing a service, which is intended for consumers or likely to be used by consumers even if not intended for them, and is supplied or made available, whether for consideration or not, in the course of a commercial activity, and whether new, used or re-conditioned;

    2. The product definition in (a) above shall not apply to second hand products supplied as antiques or as products to be repaired or reconditioned prior to being used, provided that the supplier clearly informs the person to whom he supplies the product to that effect;

    3. "Safe product" shall mean any product which, under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, does not present any risk or only the minimum risks compatible with the product's use, considered to be acceptable and consistent with a high level of protection for the safety and health of persons;

    4. "Producer" for the purpose of this Directive is defined as :

      1. the manufacturer of the product, when he is established in the Community, and any other person presenting himself as the manufacturer by affixing to the product his name, trade mark or other distinctive mark, or the person who reconditions the product;

      2. the manufacturer's representative, when the manufacturer is not established in the Community or, if there is no representative established in the Community, the importer of the product;

      3. other professionals in the supply chain, insofar as their activities may affect the safety properties of a product;

      General safety requirement and obligations of producers and distributors

    5. Producers shall be obliged to place only safe products on the market;

    6. A product shall be deemed/presumed safe if it conforms with the specific rules of national law of the Member State in which the product is marketed or the voluntary national standards transposing European Standards. In circumstances other than the aforementioned, the conformity of a product to the general safety requirement shall be assessed based on certain specific elements;

    7. Within the limits of their respective activities, producers shall provide consumers with the relevant information to enable them to assess the risks inherent in a product throughout the normal or reasonably foreseeable period of its use, where such risks are not immediately obvious without adequate warnings, and to take precautions against those risks;

    8. Where producers and distributors know or ought to know, on the basis of the information in their possession and as professionals, that a product that they have placed on the market poses risks to the consumer that are incompatible with the general safety requirement, they shall immediately inform the competent authorities of the Member States thereof under the conditions laid down in Annex I of the Directive giving details, in particular, of action taken to prevent risk to the consumer;

      Rapid intervention situations

    9. If the EC becomes aware of a serious risk from certain products to the health and safety of consumers in various Members States, it may adopt a decision requiring Member States to take measures to address the health or safety concern. Such decision shall be valid for a period not exceeding one year and may be confirmed for additional periods; and

      Implementation dates of the directive

    10. Member States shall bring into force their national legislation necessary to comply with the new Directive with effect from 15 January 2004. The 1992 Directive shall be repealed as from the same date.

ENQUIRIES

  1. For enquiries on the contents of this Circular, please contact the undersigned at telephone number 2398 5684.

Yours faithfully,

 

(Miss Helen YUNG)

 

for Director-General of Trade and Industry

* : The EU Member States are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.



 

Note : While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the above information, the Department cannot guarantee this to be so and will not be held liable for any reliance placed on the same.