The General Product Safety Regulations 2005, Statutory Instrument 2005 No. 1803 were laid before Parliament on 6 July 2005 and came into force, in the most part, on 1 October 2005. These Regulations revoke and replace the General Products Safety Regulations from 1994 (SI 1994 No. 2328) and implement into the UK the provisions of Directive 2001/95/EC, on General Product Safety. These Regulations impose requirements concerning the safety of products intended for consumers or which are likely to be used by consumers. They set in place a "general safety requirement" meaning that only safe products should be placed upon the market. The Regulations also require producers to inform consumers about the risk of products and to monitor the risk that their products pose. As food is subject to a specific safety requirement under The General Food Law Regulation, the General Product Safety Regulations will not apply directly to food products. However, the safety of, for example, packaging and adverse reactions to food as a result of food allergies/intolerances would be dealt with under these Regulations as it is the food product as a whole and not the safety of the food itself which is addressed.
