- If the Commission becomes aware of a product, or a specific category or group of products, presenting a serious risk to the health and safety of consumers, it may take any appropriate measures, either on its own initiative or upon request of Member States, by means of implementing acts, adapted to the gravity and urgency of the situation if:
- the risk cannot be dealt with, in view of the nature of the safety issue posed by the product, category or group of products, in a manner compatible with the degree of gravity or urgency of the case, under other procedures laid down by the specific Union law applicable to the products concerned; and
- the risk can be eliminated in an effective manner only by adopting appropriate measures applicable at Union level, in order to ensure a consistent and high level of protection of the health and safety of consumers and the proper functioning of the internal market.
Those measures may include measures prohibiting, suspending or restricting the placing or making available on the market of such products or laying down special conditions for their conformity assessment with regard to the safety requirement, as applicable, or for their marketing, such as representative sample testing of those products, in order to ensure a high level of consumer safety protection.
Member States shall, within their jurisdiction, take all appropriate enforcement measures necessary to ensure the effective implementation of those implementing acts. The competent authorities of the Member States concerned shall inform the Commission of the enforcement measures taken.
The Commission shall regularly evaluate the efficiency of the enforcement measures taken by Member States and inform the Consumer Safety Network of the outcome of that evaluation.
- The implementing acts referred to in the paragraph 1 shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 46(3). Those implementing acts shall specify the date on which they will cease to apply.
- On duly justified imperative grounds of urgency relating to the health and safety of consumers the Commission may adopt immediately applicable implementing acts in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 46(4).
- The export from the Union of a product that has been prohibited to be placed or made available on the Union market pursuant to a measure adopted in accordance with paragraph 1 or paragraph 3 shall be prohibited, unless the measure expressly so permits for duly justified reasons.
- Any Member State may submit a substantiated request to the Commission to examine the need for the adoption of a measure referred to in paragraph 1 or paragraph 3.
- Products that have been deemed to be dangerous on the basis of a decision of a market surveillance authority in one Member State under this Regulation shall be presumed dangerous by market surveillance authorities in other Member States.
- Where market surveillance authorities in different Member States reach divergent conclusions in terms of identification or level of the risk on the basis of their own investigation and risk assessment, any Member State may refer the matter to the Commission, requesting its opinion on the matter and the Commission shall, without undue delay, issue an opinion on the identification or on the level of the risk of the relevant product, as appropriate. Where the matter has not been referred to the Commission, the Commission may nevertheless issue an opinion on its own initiative. For the purpose of issuing an opinion referred to in this paragraph, the Commission may ask for relevant information and documents and shall invite all Member States to express their views.
- Where the Commission issues an opinion pursuant to paragraph 2, the Member States shall take it into due account.
- The Commission shall draw up guidelines for the practical implementation of this Article.
- The Commission shall periodically draw up a report on the application of this Article and shall present it to the Consumer Safety Network
- A European network of the authorities of the Member States competent for product safety (the ‘Consumer Safety Network’) is hereby established.
The purpose of the Consumer Safety Network shall be to serve as a platform for structured coordination and cooperation between authorities of the Member States and the Commission in enhancing product safety in the Union. - The Commission shall promote and take part in the operation of the Consumer Safety Network, in particular in the form of administrative cooperation.
- The tasks of the Consumer Safety Network shall be, in particular, to:
- facilitate the regular exchange of information on risk assessments, dangerous products, test methods and results, standards, methodologies for the collection of data, interoperability of information and communication systems, recent scientific developments and the use of new technologies as well as other aspects relevant for control activities;
- organise the establishment and execution of joint surveillance and testing projects, including in the context of e-commerce;
- promote the exchange of expertise and best practices and cooperation in training activities;
- improve cooperation at Union level with regard to the tracing, withdrawal and recall of dangerous products;
- facilitate enhanced and structured cooperation on product safety enforcement between Member States, in particular to facilitate the activities referred to in Article 32; and
- facilitate the implementation of this Regulation.
- The Consumer Safety Network shall coordinate its action with the other existing Union activities related to market surveillance and consumer safety and, where relevant, shall cooperate and exchange information with other Union networks, groups and bodies.
- The Consumer Safety Network shall adopt its work programme, which, inter alia, shall set out the priorities for safety of the products and for the risks covered by this Regulation, in the Union.
The Consumer Safety Network shall meet at regular intervals and, where necessary, at the duly justified request of the Commission or a Member State.
The Consumer Safety Network may invite experts and other third parties, including consumer organisations, to attend its meetings. - The Consumer Safety Network shall be duly represented and regularly participate in the relevant activities of the Union Product Compliance Network established under Article 29 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and shall contribute to its activities in relation to product safety to ensure adequate coordination of market surveillance activities in both harmonised and non-harmonised areas.
- In the framework of the activities referred to in Article 30(3), point (b), market surveillance authorities may agree with other relevant authorities or with organisations representing economic operators or consumers to carry out activities aimed at ensuring safety and protection of consumers health with respect to specific categories of products made available on the market, in particular categories of products that are often found to present a serious risk to the health and safety of consumers.
- The relevant market surveillance authorities and the parties referred to in paragraph 1 shall ensure that the agreement to carry out such activities does not lead to unfair competition between economic operators and does not affect the objectivity, independence and impartiality of those parties.
- The Commission shall organise on a regular basis joint activities of market surveillance authorities whereby the market surveillance authorities conduct inspections regarding products offered online or offline, which those authorities acquired under a cover identity.
- A market surveillance authority may use any information obtained as a result of the joint activities carried out as part of any investigation undertaken by it regarding the safety of products.
- The market surveillance authority concerned shall make the agreement on joint activities, including the names of the parties involved, available to the public and shall enter that agreement in the information and communication system referred to in Article 34 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1020. The Commission shall make that agreement available on the Safety Gate Portal.
- The market surveillance authorities concerned shall conduct simultaneous coordinated control actions (‘sweeps’) of particular products or categories of products with the objective of checking compliance with this Regulation.
- Unless otherwise agreed upon by the market surveillance authorities involved, sweeps shall be coordinated by the Commission. The coordinator of the sweep shall, where appropriate, make the aggregated results publicly available.
- When conducting sweeps, the market surveillance authorities involved may use the investigation powers set out in Chapter V and any other powers conferred upon them by national law.
- Market surveillance authorities may invite Commission officials and other accompanying persons authorised by the Commission to participate in sweeps.