Consumer goods Stricter EU consumer protection rules for purchased products
Stricter consumer protection rules will apply in the EU from now on. They are intended to ensure the safety of numerous products. The new regulations would also clarify the obligations of companies, the EU Commission announced.
13.12.2024, 00:17
13.12.2024, 00:18
SDA
The European Parliament and the EU member states officially confirmed the rules in spring 2023. The Parliament's chief negotiator said at the time: "With this law, we have taken a decisive step against those who sell unsafe products in Europe. Someone within the EU must bear responsibility for every product sold." A transitional period had been agreed in the regulation until the rules were applied.
The consumer protection association Beuc pointed out unsafe products in an analysis published in September 2022. According to British consumer advocates, these include smoke alarms that were unable to detect smoke. Citing Dutch consumer advocates, another example was surveillance cameras from China, which could reportedly be easily hacked.
The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) criticized the new regulations. "The operational effort required to implement the regulation is immense," said Volker Treier from the DIHK. Companies would have to fulfill a large number of additional documentation and verification obligations.
