It is looking increasingly likely that a 'General Safety
Provision' for consumer products will be introduced into
legislation in the near future. This idea has been simmering for
some time and the Commonwealth Treasury has recently received
public submissions on whether such a legislative provision should
be introduced. Businesses should be aware of and prepared for their
additional obligations under the provision if it is introduced.
What is a General Safety Provision?
Whilst suppliers have existing obligations under the ACL
regarding product safety, these are predominantly reactive and
expose the supplier to consumer claims after injury or death has
been caused. A General Safety Provision, by contrast, is a
proactive provision which would impose a statutory obligation on a
supplier not to supply unsafe goods to consumers. In effect, this
means that suppliers must take positive steps to ensure the safety
of a product before it is supplied to consumers, which
