Consumer protection offences

The statutory product safety and consumer protection regime in the UK, covering civil and criminal liability, is mainly legislated for by the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA 2015), Consumer Protection Act 1987 (CPA 1987), the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (GPSR 2005), SI 2005/1803, the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTR 2008), SI 2008/1277 and the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA 1974). These are supplemented by a wider range of product and consumer specific regulations.

Practice Note: Key consumer legislation—summary sets out a brief description of the key consumer legislation that businesses dealing with consumers should be aware of. It considers the core legislation relevant when trading or contracting with consumers and other key legislation relevant to the business-to-consumer relationship in the context of advertising, data protection, e-commerce, product liability and safety, the provision of services, and civil enforcement and consumer disputes, as well as other legislation which benefits consumers.

For information on CPUTR 2008, SI 2008/1277, see: Offences under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008—overview.