Directive 2001/95/EC on General Product Safety (GPSD) was published on December 3, 2001. It was established as a means allowing to ensure a high level of consumer protection through the assessment of products placed on the EU market. Products are considered to be safe when they meet the relevant safety requirements that mostly are contained in the voluntary national standards harmonized with particular European standards.

That is why the Directive 2001/95/EC should be read in conjunction with the Decision (EU) 2019/1698 “on European standards for products drafted in support of Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on general product safety”. This Decision contains the list of standards which can be used to prove the safety of products according to the GPSD.

However, the European Commission has recently amended the list of standards by publishing Decision (EU) 2020/1808.

According to the Decision 2020/1808 the following changes were made to the Decision (EU) 2019/1698: