New EU Product Safety Rules to Affect GB Small Businesses Selling to Northern Ireland

Some small businesses in Great Britain will cease sales to customers in Northern Ireland next month due to new EU product safety regulations. Northern Ireland effectively maintained its position within the EU’s single market for goods following Brexit. Consequently, the EU’s new General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) will be enforced in Northern Ireland starting 13 December. This introduces new obligations for businesses in Great Britain that sell to Northern Ireland or the EU, such as the requirement for a ‘responsible person’, which functions as a compliance agent. A responsible person is mandated for products manufactured outside the EU or Northern Ireland. These individuals or entities must be located in the EU or Northern Ireland and serve as an official liaison for matters concerning product compliance and safety. Samantha Paton, representing the Dundee-based independent fashion brand Isolated Heroes, has been endeavoring to highlight this concern. She informed the BBC’s PM programme that she would be suspending new orders to Northern Ireland and the EU from 12 December until she determines the financial outlay required to meet the new obligations. Paton noted that some service providers are beginning to offer responsible person applications, but these incur expenses. “As you start adding your products they’re showing different fees and categories for each product.” Therefore, whether utilizing a direct representative or a third-party application, small businesses will face substantial costs. E-commerce platforms are extending guidance to sellers; for instance, eBay has furnished its sellers with a compilation of providers offering GPSR compliance services. Nevertheless, this introduces an expense that could prove uneconomical for small businesses, in addition to the increased administrative burden of new labeling mandates. Correspondence sent to customers and social media updates observed by the BBC indicate that this presents a considerable challenge for small craft enterprises. For example, a stationery and illustration company based in Manchester shared on Instagram: “I’m a tiny one-woman business and don’t have the money, resources or time to implement these new rules.”So I will no longer be able to sell to the EU and Northern Ireland from 13th December. Brexit really is the gift that keeps giving.” These regulations similarly affect individuals conducting sales via platforms such as Amazon and eBay. The EU has been developing the GPSR since 2020, with its approval by the European Parliament occurring in May of the previous year. The regulation modernizes current provisions, intending to offer enhanced consumer safeguards for online purchases and to streamline product recalls. A representative from the department for business and trade stated: “We are supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the whole of the UK to get ready for GPSR and will be publishing more guidance shortly.”We will keep this under review and continue to engage businesses to ensure they are supported to trade freely.” The government reportedly anticipates that the GPSR will have a restricted effect on the UK internal market, given that it primarily formalizes existing operational practices for numerous businesses.