CELEX: 51979PC0725
Language: en
Date: 1979-12-05
Title: PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL DECISION INTRODUCING A COMMUNITY SYSTEM FOR THE RAPID EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION ON DANGERS ARISING FROM THE USE OF CONSUMERS PRODUCTS

22. 12. 79                            Official Journal of the European Communities                           N o C 321/7
                                                              II
                                                       (Preparatory Acts)
                                                  COMMISSION
               Proposal for Council Decision introducing a Community system for the rapid exchange of
                             information on dangers arising from the use of consumer products
                            (Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 11 December 1979)
 THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN                                        for the rapid exchange at Community level of infor-
 COMMUNITIES,                                                       mation concerning such products and to this end an
                                                                    organized system should be established;
 Having regard to the Treaty establishing the
 European Economic Community, in particular Article                Whereas an information system of this type would
 235 thereof,                                                       appear necessary to achieve one of the Community's
                                                                    objectives as regards the protection and information
 Having regard to the proposal of the Commission,                   of consumers, and whereas the Treaty makes no
                                                                    provisions for such powers;
 Having regard to the opinion of the European Par-
 liament,
                                                                    Whereas when certain products are subject to specific
                                                                    Community provisions, this exchange of information
 Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and
                                                                    must be carried out within the framework of the
 Social Committee,
                                                                    application of such provisions;
 Whereas, pursuant to the preliminary programme of
 the European Community for a consumer protection                   Whereas there is a very wide variety of consumer
 and information policy ('), products offered to                    goods and of uses to which they can be put, both
 consumers must be such that when used in normal                    privately or communally; whereas only a non-
 and foreseeable conditions they present no risk to                 exhaustive list of the product categories concerned
 health and safety; whereas, where such a danger                    can be given; whereas it is necessary to exclude their
 exists, suitable measures should be introduced for                 use for professional purposes which, moreover, does
 informing      consumers       thereof,     improving    the        not really meet the objects of the preliminary
 conditions of use of the products, or withdrawing                  programme for a consumer protection and infor-
 them from the market by quick and simple pro-                       mation policy;
 cedures;
 Whereas, in cases where it is noted that consumer
 products marketed in several Member States of the                   HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
 Community may endanger the health and safety of
 users in such a way that the rapid implementation of
  appropriate measures is called for, means should exist
                                                                                           Article 1
                                                                     Any Member State noting that on its territory a
  (') OJ N o C 92, 25. 4. 1975, p. 1.                                consumer product or a batch of this product, used in
 ---pagebreak--- N o C 321/8                            Official Journal of the E u r o p e a n Communities                         22. 12. 79
normal and foreseeable conditions, marketed in one               H o w e v e r all products intended f o r professional use
or m o r e M e m b e r States of the Community, presents        are excluded f r o m the field of application of this
an immediate and acute risk to the health or safety of           Decision.
users shall immediately inform the other M e m b e r
States likely to be affected, as well as the
Commission, without prejudice to C o m m u n i t y                                          Article 3
provisions relating to specific products.
                                                                 M e m b e r States shall notify to the Commission
T o facilitate the adoption of a decision by the other
                                                                without delay the measures they have taken or those
M e m b e r States and, if applicable, the adoption of
                                                                which they intend to take following receipt of the
appropriate measures by the Commission, the infor-
                                                                information referred to in Article 1.
mation f o r w a r d e d shall contain all relevant data
concerning the type of product involved, its charac-
teristics, the nature and gravity of the risks noted and
details of the measures taken or to be taken by the
                                                                                            Article 4
M e m b e r State concerned.
At the request of the M e m b e r State concerned, the           Each M e m b e r State shall designate one or m o r e
content of the information notified may be treated as            national authorities to f o r w a r d or receive the infor-
confidential.                                                    mation referred to in Articles 1 and 3.
                           Article 2
                                                                                            Article 5
For the purposes of this decision, consumer p r o d u c t s .
means all articles such as:                                     T h e M e m b e r States shall put into effect the necessary
— f o o d products for human consumption;                        measures to comply with this Decision within six
                                                                m o n t h s f r o m the date of its notification and shall
— household appliances, including those for 'do-it-              inform the Commission thereof without delay.
    yourself', gardening, games or sports;
— pharmaceutical products,           cosmetics,  chemicals,
    textiles and toys;
                                                                                            Article 6
— m o t o r vehicles, bicycles, m o t o r cycles or other
    machines used for transport.                                This Direction is addressed to the M e m b e r States.