UK proposes sweeping product safety regulation reform

The measures, which have been put forward this week in three separate consultations, are widely expected to modernise, simplify and close loopholes in the UK’s product safety legislation in light of growing safety concerns over faulty or counterfeit products purchased online.

The announcement follows a rise in reports of serious incidents caused by dangerous products, including fires caused by unsafe e-bike and e-scooter batteries, prompting the government to commit to take effective action against “unscrupulous sellers”.

The proposals will provide a long overdue upgrade to the UK’s existing product safety framework, which is based on the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 introduced two decades ago.

A review in 2023 identified the need for a new core framework. This view was roundly endorsed by parliament in passing the Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025. That Act provides the framework for wide-ranging future product safety regulation by the government. The scope of executive authority granted by the Act has been subject to controversy. To assuage at least some of these concerns, the government has confirmed that industry and expert consultation and collaboration would be central to the development of any future decision to regulate.

Consequently, the government has now launched three public consultations on a new product safety framework; enforcement and market surveillance reform; and furniture fire and safety reform to help bring the UK’s product safety system up to date.

The first consultation proposes establishing a new product safety framework to reflect modern products and supply chains and harness new technology more effectively, as well as supporting delivery of the government’s overarching Regulation Action Plan.

This consultation proposes that the current definition of a “safe product” should be retained but applied to all products, both consumer and non-consumer products, with specified exemptions. In some situations, considerations of safety should be expanded to include not just considerations of potential health and safety impacts on people but also risks of harm to property or domestic animals.

The government also proposes that the definition of businesses in scope be expanded to include producers – as it does currently – as well as onward suppliers and online marketplaces.

Endorsing a more flexible approach to product information requirements and a move towards “digital by default”, the proposals also set out plans to allow product information to be provided more flexibly, in both physical and digital formats.

The new framework is also expected to provide greater clarity on businesses’ responsibilities and a more consistent and streamlined set of regulations.

Zoe Betts, a health and safety and regulatory law expert at Pinsent Masons, said the proposals were an encouraging development for UK product safety regulation. “This is an ambitious set of proposals designed to future proof the product safety framework, making it fit for purpose and able to meet the challenges of emerging risks and technologies,” she said. “As ever the detail of the various requirements will be key, but what is clear is that change is on the way with significant new obligations likely to be imposed on duty holders.”

Crucially, added Betts, it appears the proposed UK framework will also complement updates to new product safety rules enshrined within the EU’s 2023 General Product Safety Regulation, which came into effect in December 2024, having also not been updated for more than two decades. Betts said businesses that operate across both the UK and EU markets would be encouraged by the proposals to align the two product safety regulatory regimes.

The second consultation outlines proposed reforms to “create a more coherent suite of enforcement powers” to make it easier for the government to enforce product safety rules and take effective action when issues arise.

The proposals include consolidating existing enforcement powers, broadening the options available for civil sanctions and introducing civil monetary penalties, as well as enhanced data-sharing between relevant authorities to ensure timely action can be taken.

A third consultation paper puts forward plans to update how the UK regulates the fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture. These include proposals to introduce new furniture fire safety requirements based on a smoulder test, introduce pragmatic testing solutions to facilitate innovation and make proportionate scope adjustments.

The government is inviting views on the three consultations until 23 June.

Commenting on the government’s moves to improve enforcement, Kevin Bridges, a health, safety and fire law expert at Pinsent Masons, said: “The government is clearly committed to equipping the regulator with the tools to make it most effective and efficient. Increasing the availability of civil sanctions mirrors developments in other regulated areas such as environmental offences. Significantly, civil penalties will require a lower standard of proof to be imposed.”