The Consumer Protection service aims to
- protect consumers against the supply of dangerous goods which are intended for private use
- ensure the safety of consumer goods manufactured, imported, distributed and offered for sale within the Borough.
What we do
- Programmed inspections of premises
- Sampling of products
- Respond to consumer complaints
- Respond to hazard warnings to ensure identified defective products are removed from sale
The main piece of legislation giving authorised officers the powers to deal with unsafe goods is the Consumer Protection Act 1987. Regulations have been made under this Act which impose safety requirements for a wide range of consumer goods. Some examples of these are:-
- Electrical Equipment
- Cosmetics
- Furniture
- Toys
- Bicycles
- Tyres
- Nightwear
- Hoodcords
- Pushchairs
- Babies’ dummies
Also, the General Product Safety Regulations impose a general duty on suppliers to ensure all products, including second hand goods, supplied for private use are reasonably safe.
Whilst most consumer products are covered by the above legislation, some exceptions such as motor vehicles and medicinal products are covered by separate controlling legislation which may be enforced by other agencies such as Trading Standards Division of the Department of Investment, Trade and Investment.
Trading Standards also deal with consumer issues other than product safety. Trading Standards in Armagh can be contacted on 028 37529834.
The Toy (Safety) Regulations 2011
The above regulations came into force on 19th August 2011. These regulations implement the Toy Safety Directive 2009/48/EC which seeks to enhance the level of safety of toys, and applies to all toys placed on the market on or after this date.
Toy manufacturers, importers and distributors must understand the obligations imposed on them by the above new regulations, in order to ensure that they are taking all the necessary steps to protect children from the risk of injury caused by unsafe toys.
Further information is available in the attached leaflets:
General information and guidance documents:
To access the Guide for Businesses - "Don't Chance it" - Click Here
Window blind cord safety- www.makeitsafe.org.uk
Links to useful web sites:
Consumer - www.consumerdirect.gov.uk
Trading Standards - www.tradingstandards.gov.uk
For further information contact the Environmental Health Department at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
