Dutch businesses need to comply with the new European Product Safety Regulation

The European Union's new General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR), which came into force 13 December 2024, has major implications for companies placing products on the European market.

The new regulation replaces the previous European General Product Safety Directive, which dated back to 2001 and contained rules to ensure that consumer products (non-food) on the European market are safe. The new GPSR better matches the current market of consumer products and ensures that their safety is taken to an even higher level. The regulation contains general principles for establishing safety, rather than imposing specific requirements for specific products.

Enforcement in the Netherlands

There are several regulators in the Netherlands that oversee product safety, such as the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate, Netherlands Labour Authority and the Health and Youth Care Inspectorate. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) has been designated to supervise compliance with the regulation.

Under the regulation, although the rules and requirements are consistent across the single market, the exact sanctioning of violations is left to Member States. However, it does stipulate that these penalties must be effective, proportionate and dissuasive. In this context, the NVWA published a general intervention policy (in Dutch) last year in January 2024. This sets out how the NVWA acts in the event of a breach of the regulation (or other rules).

NVWA responses

When rules on product safety are breached, the NVWA has several options to make an intervention – and this will depend on the violation. The NVWA distinguishes between serious, medium and light violations.

Punitive sanctions aim to punish the offender – for example, with a fine. Corrective interventions are aimed at remedying the offence. In addition, the NVWA can also issue a warning, which falls under "other intervention".

NVWA intervention

The NVWA is not there to bully entrepreneurs and only imposes an intervention if it finds specific abuses or potential risks during an inspection. In these instances, the company receives a "notification of report of findings" or an "intention" (for example, an intention to impose a fine). The notification states that the NVWA inspector has found a violation; the intention states the manner in which NVWA intends to intervene.

A notification or intention is not yet a final decision by the NVWA. The parties to whom the notification or the intention is addressed first have the opportunity to respond – which is the "opinion" (in Dutch, zienswijze). There is only a limited amount of time (in principle, two weeks) to send this opinion, which is taken into account by the NVWA in its final decision on whether or not to intervene. At least two further legal remedies are then available against the NVWA's decision: an objection to the NVWA and an appeal to the court.

Business compliance

The NVWA has shown recently that it can crack down on companies that fail to comply with strict safety regulations. For instance, NVWA can issue a warning but can also take other measures to stop a violation or prevent the repetition of a violation.

Moreover, unsafe products can lead to liability claims and a loss of consumer confidence. Companies that invest in product safety will, therefore, strengthen their position in the market.

Get prepared

Companies can take a number of concrete steps to comply with the new rules. Some four concrete steps, go below.

• Conduct internal audits and check that products comply with the new requirements, including technical documentation.
• Train employees and ensure your organisation is up to date with the (new) obligations around product safety.
• Review contracts with suppliers and make clear agreements on responsibilities within the chain.
• Develop a communication protocol that includes a clear process for notifications and recalls.

However, the regulation cannot be considered in isolation. The rules often have interaction with related legislation, such as the EU Product Liability Directive (2024/2853) hich requires companies to take steps to mitigate product liability risks.

Osborne Clarke comment

For many of our clients, the GPSR brings about major changes and requires preparation and an understanding of the broad definition of the term "product", the stricter rules in the event of a recall, and the role of online sales.

The new General Product Safety Regulation brings significant changes for European companies that market consumer products. It is essential that these companies are aware of the new obligations and the potential consequences of non-compliance of the new regulation.

Osborne Clarke has extensive experience in this area, including assisting companies during an inspection by the NVWA, counselling companies during an inspection, and drafting views, objections and appeals against unfavourable decisions by the NVWA. Please contact our experts on any issues raised in this Insight.