Product Safety

Product safety is regulated among other by the Consumer Safety Act. The Act is a general act that is applied in case other legislation requiring at least the same level of safety concerning a specific product or service does not apply.   The purpose of product safety is to ensure the safety of and prevent risks relating to consumer goods and services. Companies must therefore ensure that products and services  manufactured, imported and sold by it are sufficiently safe. The prevention of risks arising is minimized by making the operators subject to a duty of care.

An operator means both the suppliers of goods and the service providers. Service providers can be both companies and private persons, as well as municipalities, parishes, day care centers and associations. However, the Act does not apply to a natural person who delivers goods or provides services, other than as a commercial activity. Neither does the scope of the Act include an association or any other institution if the association or institution in question provides services to its members other than as a commercial activity.

Operators are under an obligation to cooperate with the surveillance authorities to prevent potential dangers. Operators must also at their own initiative inform the surveillance authorities about discovered safety risks and any measures the operator has taken to remove them.

The Act applies to the manufacturing, sale or other provision, leasing, import and export of consumer goods as well as the provision of consumer services.  Operator must give consumers and equivalent users sufficient information in marketing to enable them to assess the safety risks related to the product or service. The information must be set out in a clear and understandable form.

The Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency and Finnish Customs are the surveillance authorities of the Consumer Safety Act. In addition, an authority that supervises the safety of consumer goods and services under other legislation may act as a supervisory authority under the Consumer Safety Act.  All products are not checked, but random checks are performed. The surveillance authorities are authorized to inspect and to take specimen, which are necessary for the supervision. The operator is always responsible for the safety of its products and services.

If safety flaws in products or services require certain actions,  the first one is a negotiation between the surveillance authority and the operator. Other actions may not be necessary if the situation can be remedied voluntarily by the operator. The surveillance authority may order the operator of an unsafe consumer product or service to undertake remedial or corrective actions whereby the health or property risks related to the goods or services can efficiently be prevented. It is also possible to set a prohibition on sales of the product or services. Other possible consequences include inter alia destruction of the goods, prohibition on export and prohibition on import for dangerous products.

The prohibition on sales or other prohibition may be supplemented with an order to remove dangerous consumer goods from the market and to discontinue providing dangerous consumer services. In such cases the product or service is to be repaired or replaced with a corresponding safe product or service or alternatively refunded to a consumer. The surveillance authority may intensify the order or prohibition by a penalty payment. The surveillance authority may also obligate the operator to inform about the prohibition or order and about the safety risk regarding the goods or service and consumers’ rights.

Crimes in respect of health and consumer safety are also subject to statutory penalties. When considering the sanctions the surveillance authorities take into consideration how well the operator has observed its duty of care.