General consumer goods

Dangerous product

If the operator becomes aware that a consumer product poses a risk, it must immediately take measures to eliminate the risk and inform the authorities.

• If the product has only been sold in Finland, the notification is made to Tukes. The easiest way to submit a notification is to use the notification form on the Tukes website.
• If the product has been sold or marketed outside Finland, the notification must also be made to the authority of the country in question. In the EU, the easiest way is to report a dangerous product is to the Product Safety Business Alert Gateway system. Through the system, you can send the notification at the same time to the authorities in all EU and EEA countries where the high-risk product has been sold. 

All necessary measures must be taken to eliminate the hazard immediately. The business is responsible for timely and adequate measures. The business cannot wait for the authorities to deal with the case .

Market surveillance measures 

Tukes surveillance activities are risk based. Tukes does not inspect every product on the market. Risk-based means that Tukes mainly focuses surveillance on targets that pose the greatest risks or on areas in which our actions will have the greatest effect. Surveillance of consumer products is performed as spot checks. Surveillance is also directed at specific product groups on a project basis. 

In addition to supervision, Tukes offers advice, guidance and information, and organises numerous training sessions. We also cooperate with industry associations and other authorities.

Guidance and instructions

The operator must be familiar with and understand the requirements for their products. You can find plenty of useful information on the Tukes website and in the I Know My Product learning environment. 

Guidance and instructions can also be provided when handling a case for an individual product. Guidance and instructions do not relieve the operator of its statutory responsibilities. Guidance is not an acceptance.

Prohibitions and orders

A sales prohibition means a ban on selling, supplying, offering or otherwise providing a product. Products subject to a sales ban may not be supplied, not even for free. Tukes can also order the operator to fix or amend the product to meet the legal requirements.

If a product that was banned is subsequently made safe and compliant, it can be reintroduced for sale. However, in this case, it must be provided with new identification data to distinguish it from the products that were covered by the ban.

Withdrawal from the market 

This means ordering the operator to

• stop selling or otherwise supplying the product and
• promptly asking retailers to return their remaining stocks of the product.

Withdrawal from the market therefore means that all products in the distribution chain, including those held by distributors (e.g. on a shelf in a shop or in an online store), must be made unavailable to consumers and removed from the distribution chain.

Product recalls

The recall procedure means that in addition to withdrawing the product from the market, the operator must inform consumers about the danger and recall the dangerous products from consumers . In the product recall procedure, the operator

• stops selling or otherwise supplying the product and
• takes swift action to collect any products from the retailers
• takes swift action to recall products from consumers or other end users
• communicates the dangers associated with the product to consumers and other end users and asks them to return any units they have bought. This communication must be as informative as possible and delivered in a manner that reaches as many of the potentially affected consumers as possible.
• monitors the effectiveness of the communication and takes additional measures if necessary.

Please note! Measures taken by virtue of product safety legislation do not override rights under consumer protection law or the liability for damages under the Product Liability Act.