General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR)

You may have heard of the new General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR) coming into effect from 13th Dec 2024, meaning sellers of products in the EU have certain new obligations around PRODUCT SAFETY.

I love my European customers ❤️ so this means ME! and perhaps it means you too!

I’m seeing a lot of artists and makers FREAKING OUT with some even posting that they will simply stop selling products to the EU.

I’d like to share some info…*

The main concern seems to be the supposed need to have an “authorised representative” based in an EU country. Various seller platforms (Etsy, Folksy, etc) are stating that this is a REQUIREMENT, so consequently lots of people are resharing this information and panicking.

(There are also now services/scams popping up where you can PAY some random entity in the EU to be your rep.)

There’s not a lot of clear guidance BUT the actual documentation for the legislation has been around for months and I get the impression people just aren’t reading it…

Granted, it’s not exactly bedtime reading, but here’s a link:

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv%3AOJ.L_.2023.135.01.0001.01.ENG&toc=OJ%3AL%3A2023%3A135%3ATOC

If you search for the term “authorised representative” you will note it is mentioned only 8 times in the doc.

Point 1 of ‘Article 10: Obligations of authorised representatives’ states:

“1. A manufacturer may, by means of a written mandate, appoint an authorised representative”

The important term there is “may”. You MAY appoint an authorised representative. It does not state that you MUST appoint one.

And if you look at ‘Article 9: Obligations of manufacturers’, it doesn’t state anywhere in those obligations that a manufacturer MUST have an authorised representative.

This reads to me* simply that a manufacturer can appoint a representative to meet some of their obligations on their behalf.

I strongly suggest you read ‘Article 9: Obligations of manufacturers’ for yourself but the basic gist is to:

• Risk assess products to ensure they are safe
• Create and hold ‘technical documentation’ for products relating to their safety
• Ensure products are accompanied by appropriate safety information & instructions
• Provide consumers a point of contact for complaints or queries
• Ensure that appropriate corrective measures are followed if a product is found to be unsafe

Obviously the work required to meet the obligations is going to vary depending on the products you create and sell but at least to me* this doesn’t seem too onerous.

Additionally, I think it’s worth quoting paragraph 41 from the very first section:

“In order for economic operators that are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including micro-enterprises, to be able to cope with the new obligations imposed by this Regulation, the Commission should provide practical guidelines and tailored guidance, for example a direct channel to connect to experts in the event of questions, taking into account the need to simplify and limit their administrative burdens.”

I haven’t actually found that guidance or channel as of yet but I at least find it reassuring that they acknowledge that micro-enterprises such as my own do have a need to simplify and limit their administrative burdens.

Which is actually quite funny, considering that most people have avoided the administrative burden of actually reading the document…. but anyway!

UPDATE!

Okay… I did further reading after writing all that and it does actually get a little bit more complicated (sorry!).

It appears that use of the wording “authorised representative” (this is how I have seen this phrased online) has confused things here because it seems to have been muddled in with some other terms, namely: “responsible economic operator” and “responsible person”.

These are very important in clarifying the obligations required, as Article 16 states:

“A product covered by this Regulation shall not be placed on the market unless there is an economic operator established in the Union who is responsible for the tasks set out in Article 4(3) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 in respect to that product.”

Furthermore, Article 19 outlines the “obligations of economic operators in the case of distance sales” and states that we must provide:

“(b) where the manufacturer is not established in the Union, the name, postal and electronic address of the responsible person within the meaning of Article 16(1) of this Regulation or Article 4(1) of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020;”

So! While my initial understanding of an “authorised representative” not being required is correct, we DO require a “responsible person” based in the EU… and that person can be an “authorised representative” if we appoint one.

But this raises an interesting issue — as the manufacturer and shipper of my own printed products, I am clearly best placed to fulfill the tasks required as a “responsible economic operator” and it would be less effective to nominate someone else just to tick the box of them being based in the EU.

I can understand the need for a responsible EU-based person to contact when dealing with with mass-produced plastic tat from China, for example, but as a small artist and maker I think more specific guidance is required.

I note that Article 17 states:

“The Commission shall adopt specific guidelines for economic operators, with particular regard to the needs of those that qualify as SMEs, including micro-enterprises, on how to fulfil the obligations laid down in this Regulation.”

Which brings us back to paragraph 41, quoted above, that us smaller folk are left awaiting futher tailored guiance…

I have contacted the European Union asking for specific guidance on this matter. I will report back with any information I recieve…!

This is the extent of my current understanding of this shining new era of General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR). If you have additional information or a more accurate interpretation of the new obligations do feel free to drop me a line to share.

I’ve spent my morning reading up on all of this in order to write this post and share my findings freely. I humbly ask that if you found this useful and it has saved you some time, or perhaps stopped you panicking about ‘the market surveillance authorities’ coming round and kicking in your front door, please do consider buying me a coffee as a thank you.

* Final important point: I AM NOT A LAWYER** and I am not providing legal advice. I am sharing my own limited understanding and merely suggesting the points that others should pay attention to while doing the reading for themselves.

_{** While I am not a lawyer, I did once successfully represent myself in court. The judge commended me on my diligence and conduct. But that’s a story for another time…}

Thanks for reading.

Gx