UK Statutory Instrument 2005 United Kingdom

General Product Safety Regulations 2005

View on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab) Ask Guv about this Act

At a glance

Enforced by

OPSS, Trading Standards, MHRA

What's here

14 compliance obligations, 53 practical guides across 5 topics · 24 journeys

Penalty landscape

4 of 14 obligations carry imprisonment (12 months). 1 carries different penalties and 9 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.

Who this Act binds

Business-side actors with duties under this Act, ranked by how often they appear.

  • Any Person 4
  • Manufacturer 2
  • Trader 2
  • Distributor 1

Plus 5 non-business duties on Crown ministers, regulators, local authorities or tribunals — shown collapsed under each section below.

Step-by-step journeys using this legislation

Walkthroughs that take you from a real business situation to compliance.

Relevant guidance

Practical guides for businesses affected by this Act, ordered by how closely they engage with it.

Direct — cites this Act

14 guides

Supporting — topic alignment

23 guides

Mentioned in related content

16 guides
View all 53 guides →

Other Acts binding the same actors

For each actor bound by this Act, the other UK Acts that bind them most often. Useful for understanding the full compliance landscape facing each role.

Any Person also bound by 749 other Acts (top 5 shown)
Manufacturers also bound by 82 other Acts (top 5 shown)
Traders also bound by 219 other Acts (top 5 shown)
Distributors also bound by 33 other Acts (top 5 shown)

What this Act requires

Sections that create concrete duties on businesses or carry penalties. Procedural and definitional sections are folded into the “Browse other sections” expander at the bottom of each group. Click any section title to read the source text on legislation.gov.uk.

Part 1 — GENERAL

Browse 2 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 2 — OBLIGATIONS OF PRODUCERS AND DISTRIBUTORS

Part 3 — ENFORCEMENT

s.010

Enforcement

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Local authorities and regulators must enforce product safety laws Local authority
s.015

Recall notices

  • Organise product recall when served with a recall notice Trader
s.020

Offences

12 months imprisonment
  • Breach of product safety regulations 5 or 8(1)(a) Any Person
Browse 16 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Part 4 — MISCELLANEOUS

s.032

Reports

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Secretary of State must report to Parliament on product safety enforcement Crown / Minister / Government department
s.037

Complaints procedures

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Enforcement authorities must provide a product safety complaint procedure Local authority
Browse 9 other sections in this Part — procedural / definitional / commencement

Other sections — not classified into a Part

These sections exist in the Act but the contents-of-Parts walker did not place them under a Part. Likely amendments or sections inserted out of the original Part structure.

s.036

Market surveillance

Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
  • Authorities must carry out market surveillance of products Statutory regulator
Browse 6 other unclassified sections
Read the full Act on legislation.gov.uk (opens in a new tab)

Official guidance

Authoritative sources published by regulators or government explaining this legislation.

Enforcement and responsible bodies

The regulators that administer or enforce this legislation.

OPSS

Primary

Office for Product Safety and Standards

Product safety regulator responsible for ensuring consumer products are safe. Enforces product safety regulations, UKCA marking requirements, and works with market surveillance …

Trading Standards

Trading Standards (Local Authority)

Enforces consumer protection legislation including food labelling, weights and measures, product safety, and fair trading. Part of local authority structure. Investigates food …

MHRA

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

Regulates medicines, medical devices, and blood components. Ensures safety, quality, and efficacy. Issues marketing authorisations.

Explore more

Browse legislation

Find other UK business legislation with related guidance.

Regulators

Learn more about the bodies that enforce this legislation.