Consumer products: staying safe
Things to consider when buying and using products.
Product safety laws help prevent you from being harmed by what you have or use in your home, or while out and about.
However, you can also take practical steps to protect yourself and your family.
Check before you buy: things to consider when shopping
Think carefully about who and where you are buying from.
While the internet has made it far easier to get a product delivered straight to your door, if you buy it from a seller based outside the UK there is a chance it may not be manufactured or labelled in accordance with our safety laws.
Take a minute to look at any product you have bought. Does it have safety markings? Are the instructions clear? Do you have the name and address of the manufacturer? If not, these can be warning signs. Be cautious about using the product.
Be careful when buying things second-hand. If the instructions are missing, they may be available on the manufacturer’s website.
Detailed advice on Buying electrical goods online is available from Electrical Safety First.
Marking
Some products must display appropriate marking to be sold in the UK. This is a statement from the manufacturer that the product meets specific safety, health and environmental requirements.
Products this applies to include toys, electrical goods, gas appliances, fireworks and personal protective equipment such as goggles, gloves and helmets. Only buy these types of product if they have appropriate marking and the name and address of the manufacturer on them.
Products sold in Great Britain may display:
- CE marking, or
- UKCA marking, or
- UKCA marking and CE marking, or
- UKNI marking and CE marking
Products sold in Northern Ireland may display:
- CE marking, or
- UKNI marking and CE marking
Fireworks
There are 4 categories of firework:
- F1 – indoor
- F2 – garden
- F3 – large garden
- F4 – professional use only, often at organised public displays
You should only buy fireworks if they are category F1, F2 or F3, and have appropriate marking, as described above.
To buy category F2 or F3 fireworks in Northern Ireland a licence from the Department of Justice is required.
Fireworks should be set off between certain times:
Find out when fireworks at home are allowed
Fireworks can cause serious burns or other injuries if misused, so you should follow the instructions on them. Further safety advice is given by two well-known charities:
Firework safety – Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA)
Firework safety – Child Accident Prevention Trust
Register your products
Many household products, especially electrical ones, come with the option to register them with the manufacturer. People often do this to activate an extended guarantee or warranty, but it’s also very important for safety reasons.
Registering your product means that you can then be directly informed if there is a safety issue with it and get any repairs done as soon as possible. If it is recalled, a refund or replacement will be arranged.
To register a product, find the registration page on the manufacturer’s website and complete and submit the form presented.
Alternatively, you may be able to register by phone or post.
You can register second-hand products as well as new ones.
If you don’t register, you risk using unsafe products without realising it.
Examine and follow instructions
The instructions that come with products are designed to help you use them safely. It’s important to read and follow them.
For example:
- cleaning fluids should be securely stored in cupboards, well out of reach of children
- heavy furniture should be attached to the wall to avoid it tipping over
- fridge freezers need to have enough room behind them for air ventilation
Detailed Product safety information on specific types of products is available from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
Respond to product recalls
If a business discovers that a product it has sold represents a safety risk, it must take action to remedy the issue. This could include issuing new instructions, modifying the product, or requiring consumers to stop using the product and return it for a refund. The business must contact all the consumers it knows are affected to alert them to the issue and tell them what they should do.
If you receive an email or letter from a business with the words such as ‘Important Safety Warning’ or ‘Product Recall’ displayed, you should:
- check if it relates to a product you own
- take any actions it recommends
- get answers from the website shown on the notice if you have questions, or by calling the manufacturer, whose number should be provided in the letter or email
To find out about new recalls, check the list of the latest consumer product recalls.
Updates to this page
Last updated 29 July 2024 + show all updates
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Link added to new page for reporting product safety issues.
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Subsection on fireworks added.
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Contact details in the event of concerns about the safety of a product extended to Northern Ireland.
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Link to the latest consumer product recalls redirected to the new, searchable list of alerts, reports and recalls.
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Link added to advice on button batteries.
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Link added to advice on battery safety when using e-cigarettes.
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Link added to advice on making blind cords safe.
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Link added to advice on button batteries provided in a new product safety campaign.
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Link added for consumer helpline to Advice Direct Scotland.
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First published.