The General Product Safety Directive (2001/95/EC) applies to engineering products that can be directly used by consumers (for example garden machinery, lamps, consumer electronics, household appliances…). While the safe use of these products is already covered by a number of specific technical directives (e.g. the Low Voltage and Machinery directives), the GPSD places additional post-marketing obligations on manufacturers. This directive has also set up a harmonised rapid alert system (RAPEX), which helps co - ordinate on of national market surveillance against unsafe consumer products.

Orgalime's main concern is to maintain a clear separation between the GPSD and specific technical directives, so as to avoid confusion and unnecessary bureaucratic burdens for manufacturers. We also aim to avoid that the precautionary principle, forced into the text by the European Parliament, does not lead to diverging interpretations by national market surveillance authorities, which would restrict the free movement of goods.

Orgalime ensures that legal requirements laid down for the consumer market do not affect the freedom of contracts, and do not inspire trigger-happy regulators for the business-to-business (B2B) market.

Finally, we work on developing intelligent market surveillance practices, that restore consumer confidence in engineering products.

 

 

Picture Courtesy of Orgalime