Product safety checklist for fulfilment centres

1. Check your product safety responsibilities

Does the product come from the Netherlands or another EU country? Then you are considered a distributor according to product legislation. And must follow the product safety checklist for distributors. Your customer is responsible for product safety. You remain responsible for safe storage and possibly shipping.

Does the product come from outside the EU? Then you must meet additional requirements for product safety if:

• the product comes from outside the EU directly to your warehouse
• the manufacturer, importer, agent, or distributor does not have an establishment in the EU
• you carry out at least 2 of the following activities for your customer outside the EU: storage, packaging, addressing, shipment
• the product is on a list of 18 products for which stricter rules apply in the EU

2. Put your contact details on the product

Does step 1 show that you have additional product safety obligations? Then you should add your contact details to the product. Supervising authorities (toezichthouders) can then contact you if there are concerns about the safety of the product. Because you process products from outside the EU, you are the contact person for consumers and authorities. You can include your details on:

• the product, or
• the packaging, or
• the parcel, or
• a document that you enclose

The compulsory details are your:

• company name or trademark
• contact details
• (postal) address

3. Provide the right documents per product

The products you store must have certain documents. These documents state how the product complies with product safety legislation. Is this information missing? Then you may not ship the product in the Netherlands and the EU. So, ask the manufacturer for the following documents:

• the EU declaration of conformity
• the technical file

You must keep the declaration of conformity and the technical file of the product for 10 years. For some products, this is 20 years. It depends on the type of product.

4. Take immediate action if you doubt the safety of a product

Do you suspect that a product is not safe? Then you should notify the relevant authorities of each EU country where the product is sold. You can make this notification via the EU platform Safety Gate. You must also take immediate action to prevent consumers from being at risk. Or ensure that the product is modified so that it meets (complies with) the safety requirements. You do not have to do this yourself, but you must ensure that measures are taken. For example, by asking the manufacturer to make adjustments. And by checking whether the manufacturer has done so. Report to the supervising authorities what you have done to reduce the risks.

Can you not modify the product? Then a product safety authority may require you to:

• take the product off the market
• recall the product

This often costs a lot of money and can be bad for your company's image.

5. Cooperate with supervising authorities and inspectorates

If a product safety authority asks for information on the safety of a product, you must provide it. This includes:

• the EU declaration of conformity
• the technical file
• additional information and documents proving the safety of the product (such as certificates or decisions by supervising authorities)

If any information is missing, you must request it from your customer.