Simon Castley

This Practice Note summarises the law on product liability and defective products under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 (CPA 1987). CPA 1987 imposes liability on producers of defective products. This Practice Note considers what constitutes a defective product under CPA 1987, who in the supply chain may be liable, their degree of liability and any contributory negligence issues, the type of damages that may be awarded and the various defences available to a producer. It considers significant case law impacting the definition of defect and burden of liability under CPA 1987 as provided for in Wilkes v DePuy and Gee v DePuy and also considers the plans for future reform in this area.

This Practice Note explains the risks faced by producers in respect of their liability to members of the public for dangerous or sub-standard products, and the steps which producers can take to manage that risk.

This Checklist sets out the key issues for consideration by a business when dealing with a product safety matter. It sets out what a business should consider when designing systems to manage product liability risk in this area, including with reference to the Code of Practice on Product recalls and other corrective actions (PAS 7100:2022).