Product safety recall notices in the European Union

The three parts of Safety Gate

The GPSR renamed the rapid alert system RAPEX as Safety Gate ¹. Recital 68 describes three elements ¹.

Who must notify, and how

• Manufacturers inform the market surveillance authorities of the Member States where the product was sold, through the Safety Business Gateway, with details of the risk, corrective measures and quantities still on the market if available ¹.
• Importers that find a dangerous product must inform the manufacturer at once and make sure authorities are informed through the Safety Business Gateway ¹.
• Distributors must make sure the authorities are immediately informed through the Safety Business Gateway ¹.
• Online marketplaces must immediately inform authorities, through the Gateway, of dangerous products offered on their interfaces that they actually know about ¹.
• Manufacturers must notify accidents through the Gateway without undue delay, covering any death or serious adverse effect on health and safety, to the authority of the Member State where the accident happened ¹.

What a recall notice must say

Article 35 requires businesses to notify all affected consumers who can be identified directly and without undue delay ¹. Businesses that hold customer data must use it for recalls and safety warnings ¹. Where not all consumers can be reached, a clear and visible recall notice goes out through other channels, including the company website, social media, newsletters, shops and, where appropriate, mass media ¹.

Article 36 says a written recall notice must be easy for consumers to understand and available in the language or languages of the Member States concerned ¹. Its headline must consist of the words Product safety recall ¹. The Commission sets a recall notice template by implementing act ¹. Recital 87 records that one-third of consumers continue to use dangerous products after seeing a recall notice, with complex drafting or wording that minimises the risk named as reasons ¹.

Remedies for consumers

Article 37 requires an effective, cost-free and timely remedy ¹. The business must offer a choice between at least two of these: repair, replacement, or an adequate refund at least equal to the price paid ¹. Only one remedy may be offered where the others are impossible or would cost the business a disproportionate amount ¹.

The consumer is always entitled to a refund if repair or replacement is not completed within a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience ¹. Repair by the consumer counts only where it can be done easily and safely and is set out in the recall notice ¹.

How EU notices compare with other systems

Public alerts appear on the Safety Gate portal, which the Commission titles the EU rapid alert system for dangerous non-food products ³. In the United Kingdom, OPSS publishes three types of entry: product recalls, product safety reports and product safety alerts ⁴. The UK page points readers to the OECD Global Recall Portal for international recalls ⁴.

Content rules differ. A US recall notice ordered under section 15 of the Consumer Product Safety Act must include a description and photograph of the product, the action being taken and the hazard ⁵. In Australia, the ACCC sends a supplier its draft public notice for review, usually with 5 business days to reply, and says it is likely to publish if no reply comes by that date ⁶.

Safety Gate figures for 2025

The Commission reported on 9 March 2026 that Safety Gate alerts rose 13% to 4,671 in 2025, the highest level on record ². Cosmetics and toys made up over half of reported cases ². Reported follow-up actions rose 35% ². These include withdrawing or recalling products, stopping them at borders and removing listings from online marketplaces ². By the end of 2025, more than 1,200 online marketplaces had registered on the Safety Gate Portal ².