The Socialists and Democrats reached a deal last night with the European Commission, EU Member States and other political groups in the European Parliament on the new General Product Safety Regulation. The S&Ds introduced new provisions that will make imported products safer. From now on,  for every item imported from a third countries and sold to Europeans online, one person physically present in the EU has to take on the legal responsibility.

René Repasi, MEP and S&D negotiator on the General Product Safety Regulation in the European Parliament committee on internal market and consumer protection, said:

“The deal reached last night between the European Parliament and EU countries will protect consumers better from dangerous products. The new rules for online marketplaces and companies in the supply chain update already existing product safety laws and adapt them to the new challenges of online shopping and cyber-threats.

“The new requirements are particularly important for products shipped directly from a third country. In the future, every product must be traceable to a so-called 'responsible person' in the EU. This will strengthen market surveillance and ensure that products are checked for compliance with European product safety laws and safety standards in the EU.

“On online marketplaces, a particularly large number of dangerous products are traded. Marketplace providers will have to react more quickly to market surveillance orders from the authorities and inform consumers better in the event of recalls. I regret that the member states in the Council of the EU were unwilling to put more obligations on online marketplaces. Yet, the deal reached last night will certainly make online shopping safer for Europeans, thanks to the improvements the Socialists and Democrats introduced into the text proposed by the European Commission.

“For this reason, I am satisfied with the overall outcome of the negotiations. We included new rights for consumers in case of recalls of dangerous products. The consumer will be able to choose whether the product should be replaced, repaired or the purchase price refunded well beyond the usual period existing now.

“These new rules are a necessary step for better consumer protection and uniform rules in the internal market for businesses.”