There are just seven weeks to go until Friday the 13th of December, the unlucky date that the EU has chosen to impose GPSR regulations.
The timing couldn’t be worse – someone in the EU obviously didn’t get the message that retail doesn’t change anything in Q4, and especially not in December in the final 10 days of shipping before Christmas. If you’re a retailer and have any time at this time of year to invest in compliance and regulation then you’re probably unique!
Friday 13th December GPSR
GPSR, or General Product Safety Regulation, will impact non-food product placed on the EU and Northern Ireland market from 13 December 2024.
You will need an appointed Responsible Person based in the EU and label your products with the contact information, including the postal and electronic address, of the Responsible Person. This labeling can be attached to the product, its packaging, the parcel or an accompanying document, as well as displayed online when listing.
You will also need to display warning and safety information – in addition to any other information concerning the labelling and marking required in compliance with applicable EU product safety and compliance law – in online listings, in the language of the country of sale. For many this entails uploading multiple safety infographics to each listing and that in itself it going to take time. In summary, to comply with GPSR you need:
To comply with GPSR, you need:
- The product manufacturer’s name and contact information
- If the manufacturer isn’t located in the EU or NI, you’ll have to indicate an EU-based Responsible Person or entity, along with their name and contact details
- Any relevant product information like model number, pictures, type, and CE marking
- Product safety and compliance information like safety warnings, labels, and product manuals in the local language
But perhaps the most time consuming and costly part of compliance with GPSR isn’t paying Responsible Person fees, but the huge number of work hours it will take to gather the required information and upload to every platform that you sell on… and that’s why so many retailers have told me they simply won’t be selling to the EU and Northern Ireland after Friday 13th of December.
Marketplace Impacts on Friday 13th December
Listing deactivation if we become aware of non-compliance with any of the requirements, or discover that the Responsible Person information provided is invalid.
– Amazon
Under safety regulations, like the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR), if you’re selling certain products to certain regions, such as the EU or Northern Ireland, you need to provide contact information for the manufacturer, and sometimes the EU Responsible Person, to ensure product safety standards are met and maintained.
– eBay
All online listings will be blocked if retailers are not compliant with the EU legislation when selling into the EU, CH, NO & UK (as this includes NI on the Fruugo platform). As part of the EEA, CH & NO are harmonising these laws also.
– Fruugo
One Response
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SUPPLY “SAFETY INFORMATION” FOR A BOOK?