Product Recalls - General Product Safety Regulation

This page does not constitute legal advice on any subject matter from Fruugo.com Ltd. As a retailer it is your responsibility to conduct your own research and/or seek independent legal advice in understanding your compliance obligations.

What is a ‘Product Recall’?

A product recall is a request to consumers to return, repair or dispose of a product due to product safety concerns which may cause harm to the user or the environment.

Retailers obligations -

At Fruugo the safety and wellbeing of our customers is extremely important, and as such it is strictly prohibited to sell any unsafe products, dangerous products, or products that are subject to a product recall or safety alert.

In the event a product recall, or product safety notice must be issued, Article 35 of the GPSR makes it a mandatory requirement for this information to be directly sent to consumers by both the economic operator and an online marketplace in accordance with the other obligations set out in Articles 9,10,11 and 12.

All product recalls and product safety notices must be sent without delay to consumers via a direct notification. Under implementing regulation 2024/1435 the EU Commission has created a standardised template that must be adopted for product recalls. You must ensure that this template is used for all product recalls sent to consumers based in the EU.

Remedies-

Article 37 of the GPSR sets out the three remedies above available for a consumer in the event of a Product Recall.

The three potential remedies for a consumer are:

A refund
A repair of the product
A replacement of the product

As per the GPSR, an economic operator must offer a customer at least two available remedies, which must be effective, cost-free and completed in a timely manner.

Article 37(2) GPSR -
Without prejudice to any other remedies that the economic operator responsible for the recall may offer the consumer, the economic operator shall offer the consumer the choice between at least two of the following remedies:
(a) the repair of the recalled product;
(b) a replacement of the recalled product with a safe one of the same type and at least the same value and quality; or
(c) an adequate refund of the value of the recalled product, provided that the amount of the refund shall be at least equal to the price paid by the consumer.

A repair must only be offered as a remedy if it can be safely carried out and completely removes the associated risk stated in the recall notice (e.g. the replacement of a battery).

The remedy must not significantly inconvenience the consumer. The consumer must not be held responsible for the return costs of the product. Where a product should be returned, it is your responsibility as a retailer to ensure that a pre-paid label is provided to the consumer.

In the event that Fruugo issues a product recall we will instruct the consumer to immediately cease use of the product, and safely dispose of the item in exchange for a refund unless other instructions have previously been provided by another economic operator (retailer, importer or manufacturer). In the event that a refund is issued to the consumer, this will be done at a retailer's expense.

Product Recall Page -

Fruugo will be creating a product recall page for recalls that we have actual knowledge of. We encourage retailers to also create a product recall page and/or share any recalls via social media where applicable to reach as many consumers as possible and to target consumers who may not be contacted via a direct notification.

Sustainable Waste Management and Disposal of Products

Under the GPSR, all disposed products after a product recall must be done so in line with EU Legislation regarding sustainability and environmental protection. The EU promotes the prevention of waste and the repair and re-use of products. Where applicable to do so, we do encourage you to offer a customer a repair of their item. If it is not possible to safely and easily repair the item, we advise that you encourage consumers to safely recycle the recalled products as opposed to just disposing of the waste.

If you are subject to a recall of Electrical and Electronic Equipment, we refer you to your obligations under the WEEE Directive (WEEE Directive ) and Extended Producer Responsibility (Compliance Manager) requirements.