GPSR - What we know and what we're doing to support you

Folksy Updates
1

As many of you know, the new General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR) are coming into effect on 13th December 2024.

These changes are complicated, but we’re here to help.

We’ve put together an article to cover what we know, what’s changing, how Folksy plans to support you, and what you can start doing to ensure you comply with the new legislation.

Although we’ve spent a lot of time looking into GPSR, there are still areas we are unsure about, and we will update the article when we receive clarification on certain points. In the meantime, please do take the time to read through it and, if you have any questions, just ask - we will answer to the best of our knowledge.

Please remember we are not legal professionals – this is our interpretation of the new regulations and does not form legal advice. For more detailed guidance and to check how the legislation applies to you, please consult a legal professional.

20 Likes
3

Thank you that’s really helpful.

2 Likes
4

Thank you, that was really helpful and supportive. Though, what GPSR rules are there around digtial downloads (e.g a knitting pattern?) Thanks.

2 Likes
5

Thank you for this info. It is really helpful. It will be useful to be able to separate non EU countries.

4 Likes
6

Thank you so much for this Folksy.
I for one am finding it an absolute midfield. Why do they have to talk in gargon :joy:

Whilst I will not be selling to the EU (costs!) I’ve been looking into fully complying regarding labelling as I’m sure in the future the regulations will be tightened up just to sell in the UK.

What I currently do is add a swing tag to my items with materials ie; 100% Acrylic (which is the main yarn I use) and washing instructions (according to the yarn manufacturers instructions)

I think I may now also add this warning (which I probably should have been doing anyway!)
𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗪𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴
Whilst the utmost care is taken when sewing on buttons, I do advise you to periodically inspect this garment for wear and tear and any loose attachments and/or fibres.

Some sites say labels have to be permanent (sewn in) some say swing tags are fine, some say just inside or on the packaging is OK. I was thinking of changing the swing tags to a postcard in the package as I can fit more information on.
Satin sewn in labels would be fine for me to do for all my acrylic knits as I use this a lot, but when I make the odd item with a different yarn (I’m currently knitting with yarn which is 97% Acrylic, 3 % Polyester) it would get costly for me to have these printed for just 3 or 4 items.

I’ve recently read they may need the ‘Keep away from fire’ label but it was always my understanding that this was for nightwear?

I understand we also need to include our address. As this is on the receipt from folksy which I print off and include in the package, is this enough?

Also batch numbers. I don’t make in batches. Do I just give each item a unique number and add that on the label?

So many questions :woman_facepalming:t3::joy:

3 Likes
7

Thank you SO much for writing such a clear article for everyone, very much appreciated!

I just have a couple of questions please:

  1. When are the new shipping options going live - when will we be able to start making amendments to our listings?

  2. You mentioned that you’ll be updating the article when you can - will you be letting us know when those updates happen? (I’m particularly interested in what you find out about the exemption of artwork! And thank you for the clarification on digital downloads which I was also wondering about - although it wasn’t the answer I was hoping for!)

I’ve been thinking about whether Folksy could potentially offer a joint representative service for all sellers, and it’s great to read that you’ve been thinking along the same lines. If you could do that it would be game changing for so many of us. Fingers crossed eh?!

It’s such a shame that the main obstacle in all of this is the authorised representative - I think most of us would be happy, willing and able to supply safety, labelling, contact etc information (many of us already do) - but the prohibitive cost of employing an AR is going to stop so many small independents.

6 Likes
8

At a guess a ‘batch’ for your items would be anything from the same ball of wool /dye lot of yarn. Thinking that if there was a manufacturer’s recall on the wool you use that would be per dye lot / ball number (if there is such a thing - I can’t knit so this is all a guess!) and you’d need to be able to identify which items you’d made and sold from the hypothetical problem yarn.

3 Likes
9

Thank you @folksycontent

I won’t be selling to the EU or NI but will continue elsewhere.
I have read the main body and started to read some of the info from the highlighted links, there’s so much to take in and read, one link is 44 pages so will have to keep popping back but I did note UK regulations are going to be updated as some of the safety data may be falling behind the EU. My clerical job use to be health and safety management so it will be interesting to start looking and reading about new regs again.
With all this in mind and the fact that it mentions online marketplaces and platforms will Folksy be implementing rules on selling items that do not comply ? And will sellers who sell products in categories such as toys have to provide safety information before being allowed to sell on the platform or will it be down to sellers to educate themselves and abide by the regs, my concerns have always been that some sellers clearly either don’t care about breaching the rules or just don’t have a clue but of course ignorance won’t stand up in a court of law and if fined it could have a very negative affect on Folksy.

Pleased to see we will be able to opt out of selling to the EU and NI when the shipping is updatedl,

3 Likes
10

Thank you, it’s so good to see clear advice and to know that a solution to the NI shipping issue is imminent!

2 Likes
11

I totally get your thinking and it makes sense until I make something with 20 colours and have 20 different batch/dye lot numbers for 1 item.
Thank you for taking time to read and reply though :heart:

3 Likes
12

Have you tried making your own labels by using ribbon and transfer paper? There’s a few turorials/shorts on YT. Should mitigate the cost of labels for a short run?

2 Likes
13

That’s worth looking into. Thank you :heart:

2 Likes
14

An excellent article @Folksyadmin @folksycontent and thanks so much for everything you are doing.

My only comment (and I apologise in advance for what is going to be a long post) is that it seems to imply that these safety regulations are new, and that it only focuses on the EU version. Of course their regs are newly updated and have stricter compliance needs across a broader range of products than before, but we already have to comply with a large number of the requirements under our own UK GPSR, not just the more product specific ones.

The article does make reference to the need to comply with all UK regulations, but the way it is worded may unintentionally be implying that safety regs are something that only apply if you are selling in the EU, or if you are selling products in the UK that need UKCA marks or safety warnings attached.

People are becoming more familiar with the more specific regs such as Toy Safety Regulation, or Food Safety, (although as Debbie pointed out not everyone fully complies) but the UK GPSR applies to all products put on the market, unless already covered by a more specific one. So at a minimum for UK products we should be doing a risk assessment and providing traceability details, and where applicable adding safety warnings and ingredient lists. And I believe some of this needs to be listed at the point of sale (so a photo or info in the listing is required) as well as on tags or leaflets sent with the product.

I appreciate the EU GPSR changes ,and the issues around changing shipping options, are the current hot potatoes, but can I ask that you tweak the article to make it clearer that the UK GPSR exists, and possibly do a feature on it at some future point.

It maybe worth a webinar covering GPSR (both UK and EU) with someone that has the expertise, as I think many of the questions asked here are probably relevant to all sellers.

And if you can extend that to provide more information on UK seller obligations under the more specific safety regulations (toys etc) that would be brilliant. I know they are highly specialised and each regulation will have it’s own specific tests/documents/etc, but if you did a few case studies it would show the commonality of overarching principles and some transferable ideas that would be of interest to makers of broader products.

For example, I make toys from fabric and wool felt - maybe the chemical, physical and fire safety tests I undertake could be of interest to anyone looking to risk assess anything they make from fabric and felt, or even yarn. And I’d love to hear about how others do their risk assessments for a broad range of products. And maybe a discussion on whether batch numbers are needed (not very often in my experience) or how to practically manage the documentation, or comply with traceability and labeling, would be helpful.

4 Likes
15

Info@gblabels.co.uk

Hope this helps

2 Likes
16

@Knittingtopia @DemelzaDesigns I use Care Labels as they can supply the necessary chemical test documentation I need for my toy makes - not required for everyone I appreciate but good to know if you do.

3 Likes
17

I have made a note to update my own, I have a folder with some information I got from suppliers some years ago such as safety for filling and fabrics etc, I need to have a fresh look and consult with my suppliers again.
You have written this so well Sharon and obviously do extensive testing yourself. I was hoping Folksy could do as you have mentioned, an article on Uk regulations especially for those sellers that make and sell items that clearly need testing and are doing nothing to comply, perhaps just pointing sellers in the right direction to where they can find the correct information and guidelines rather than trying to rewrite it. A gentle reminder that sellers need to do this themselves.

3 Likes
18

Admittedly a long time ago now and when I did craft fairs with my lady’s crocheted jackets, the trading standards officer was a regular visitor. He told me that as long as I gave a card or tag with the yarn content and wash care instructions, it was OK. I asked him what to do if my jackets contained lots of different fibres…which they did…and he said that it was OK to mark the card “fibre content unknown”. It also didn’t need to be a sewn in label…I don’t know if this has changed or not ( I am talking UK only)…
I am currently using up all my oddments of yarn to make blankets ( until all the yarn is gone ) and then I will be sticking to my paintings…safer…BUT does anyone know if the above is OK for the crochet that I sell and the blankets that will be listed in the future?
@DemelzaDesigns I clicked on that link but nothing happened…xx
I googled it and this is all I could find…at the moment, I give all the yarn content and wash care in my folksy listing bio
Wash care labels are not required by law in the UK or the EU . While you’re not legally required to add a wash care label to a garment, if the consumer damages that garment by washing it in the wrong way, you could be liable for the costs of repair or replacement.

4 Likes
19

That’s what I’ve found too Brenda.
I include fibre content and washing instructions in my listings and as I said, a swing tag with the same information but maybe looking to changing this to a postcard in the package but I’m not sure this is enough?

I’m aware of the safety regs with kids clothing which mainly consists of drawstrings which I don’t make/use and obviously making sure buttons are sewn on securely. Both me and my husband have tried really, really hard to pull my buttons off and they don’t budge.

I just want to make sure I’m doing everything I need to.

2 Likes
20

I found it useful to save the wool band and put a hole punch in it and fasten a piece of yarn to the band as it makes it easier to reference not only the colour but also the batch numbers and care instructions.

2 Likes