Call for Government to ensure accountability and action on online marketplaces for product safety

ECA (Electrical Contractors’ Association) is a signatory in an open letter to Government asking for more accountability to be placed on online marketplaces to ensure the products they are selling are safe; and that regulators have the powers to issue fines and other penalties against online marketplaces that fall short of those standards.

ECA has joined a coalition of UK consumers, businesses and public safety organisations, to write to Justin Madders MP, Minister for Employment Rights, Competition and Markets. This follows the news that the Product Regulation and Metrology Act has recently passed Royal Assent.

While ECA welcomes the news of the Act, which will ensure a level-playing field between online sellers and the traditional high-street shops, it believes that secondary regulations needs to be brought in, which will be discussed further during the consultation phase. The letter reads:

"Dear Minister,

As a broad coalition representing UK consumers, businesses, and public safety organisations we applaud the government’s firm commitment at Royal Assent of the Product Regulation and Metrology Act to ‘hold online marketplaces to account for dangerous products sold through their platforms, creating a level playing field with bricks and mortar stores’. This essential Act has laid the groundwork for the introduction of a strong new duty on online marketplaces and tough enforcement powers to protect online shoppers and drive economic growth in line with your government's key mission.

The success of these new laws is dependent on robust secondary legislation which we know ocials will be drafting in the coming months. While we look forward to engaging with the upcoming consultation process, we are writing to you now to demonstrate the broad consensus among UK businesses, consumer groups and public safety organisations in favour of secondary regulations that:

• introduce a clear duty to make online marketplaces accountable for the safety of all products sold, including proactively preventing the sale of unsafe products on their platforms.
• empower regulators to issue heavy fines or to then take further enforcement action for online marketplaces that fall short of the required standards. ..."

The letter continues. To read the letter in full follow this link.

This article appears on the ECA news and blog site as "ECA calls for Government to ensure accountability and action on online marketplaces for product safety" dated 29 August, 2025.

--ECA

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