The European Commission has started to publish a weekly alert notice on product safety issues across the EU.
On 15 January 2004 the revised General Product Safety Directive came into force. The European Commission generally receives two to four safety alerts from Member States every week through the EU-wide ’rapid alert system’, called RAPEX. The type of products most often cited in these alerts are toys followed by other products aimed at children. The concern for most of these products are risks of choking and suffocation, electric shocks and fires.
The Commission has now started to publish a weekly RAPEX overview of the most important safety issues for the general public.
A separate ’rapid alert system’ covers food and feed products (RASFF).
