Too many unsafe products once again found in the EU market in 2021

25 April 2022
by BEUC -- last modified 25 April 2022

Once again thousands of notifications about unsafe products were made to Safety Gate, the EU's rapid alert system in 2021, a total of 2142 notifications to be exact.

The notifications only represent the tip of the iceberg, as the precise number of dangerous products linked to a notification is unknown and only the most harmful risks are notified.

The product groups with the most notifications in 2021 were motor vehicles and toys. The most common risks were from physical injury or chemicals harmful to health.

Monique Goyens, Director General at The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC), commented:

"Year in year out, we see these disheartening results. It's simply unacceptable that European consumers risk buying products that could harm them and their family. These figures should be a wake-up call for European regulators to agree on an ambitious new General Product Safety Regulation in the coming months which keeps consumers safe for real."

Stephen Russell, Secretary-General of The European Consumer Voice in Standardisation (ANEC), said:

"In a perfect world, consumers would be able to trust businesses not to sell harmful products. But today's revelation makes clear this is not the case. The consequence is that national authorities need to commit the resources necessary to intervene and ensure that the legislation is keeping consumers safe."

BEUC is the umbrella group for 46 independent consumer organisations from 32 countries. Its main role is to represent them to the EU institutions and defend the interests of European consumer.

The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC)