Repair, replacement or refund: what the regulation provides in a recall
Since 13 December 2024 the General Product Safety Regulation, known as the GPSR, has applied across the European Union. Article 37 covers what is offered in a recall for safety reasons. Below we explain what the text states.
Three remedies, of which at least two are offered
The regulation sets out three corrective remedies:
- repair of the product
- replacement with a safe product of the same type and of at least the same value and quality
- adequate refund
The responsible economic operator is required to offer at least two of them, so that the consumer has a choice. A unilateral single-remedy policy is no longer sufficient.
The text provides one exception: a single remedy may be offered where the others would be impossible, or would impose on the responsible operator costs that are disproportionate to the remedy proposed.
Free of charge, and without return shipping costs
The regulation states that the remedies are provided free of charge and without significant inconvenience to the consumer. It also states expressly that the consumer does not bear the cost of shipping or returning the product.
If repair or replacement is delayed
The text contains a fallback clause. Where the responsible operator has not completed the repair or the replacement within a reasonable period and without significant inconvenience, the consumer is entitled to a refund in any event.
The regulation sets no number of days for what counts as reasonable. It also sets no deadline within which the remedy must be claimed, so a recall may concern a product bought much earlier.
Where the notice provides for repair by the consumer
There are recalls in which a simple action is requested from the owner, for example removing a component or installing a software update.
The regulation permits this form only where the repair can be carried out easily and safely by the consumer, and only where it is provided for in the recall notice itself. In those cases the responsible operator supplies the necessary instructions, spare parts or software updates free of charge.
The text adds that repair by the consumer does not remove the rights provided by the directives on the sale of goods and on digital content.
Where the notice provides for disposal of the product
In some recalls the destruction or disposal of the product is requested. The regulation permits this only where it can be done easily and safely by the consumer, and states that disposal does not affect the right to a refund or a replacement.
The form of the notice is standardised
Since December 2024, Implementing Regulation 2024/1435 has established a mandatory template for recall notices. The purpose of the template is to avoid vague or softened wording that plays down the seriousness.
The regulation also provides that the responsible operator informs directly the consumers it is able to identify, before the public announcement.
What Article 37 does not cover
The GPSR does not apply to medicinal products for human use or to food. Recalls in those categories follow separate procedures.
The same rule applies in every member state
The GPSR is a regulation, not a directive. It applies directly and in identical wording in every EU country, so what is described here holds in Germany, Austria, Greece, Cyprus and every other member state without national transposition. What differs from country to country is the supervising authority, not the remedies themselves.
Which details are usually requested
In these procedures the details usually requested are the proof of purchase, the batch number or product code, and the date of purchase.