The Consumer Protection Act of 1987 (CPA) enacted by the United Kingdom Parliament is designed to protect consumers from defective products, amend the Limitation Act of 1980, and provide statutory defences to civil products liability claims.
The CPA establishes strict liability for damages resulting from a defective product. Under the CPA, the producer, any person purporting to be the producer or any importer into European Union for commercial sale can be held civilly liable for damages caused by a defective product. The liability is strict and the claimant bringing suit does not need to prove negligence or fault on behalf of the producer. Damages can be recovered for personal injury, death, or even damage to property as long as the property was intended for private use by the claimant and the amount of the damage exceeds £275.
The Limitation Act of 1980 was designed to set statutory time limits to bring suit on various civil actions. Under the Limitation Act, a claimant had six years to bring a general tort claim and three years to bring a personal injury claim. The CPA amends this Act and gives a claimant 3 years from the date of the injury or from the date that claimant should have known of the defect to bring suit in a tort or personal injury claim when the cause of action is a defective product. Additionally, the CPA bars any suit brought more than ten years after the product was put into circulation.
While the CPA does not require the claimant to prove any negligence or fault on behalf of the producer to prevail in a claim, the CPA does allow the producer to claim as a defence that it was unreasonable or impossible for the producer to have known of the defect at the time of production. Another defence available to the producer is the alteration of the product after it is placed into circulation. In this case, a producer argues that the defect is caused by the alteration and the product was not defective in it its original form. Defendants are also not responsible for stolen or counterfeited products. Lastly, if a defendant can prove the defect is a result of compliance with a required law, he is not liable for damages suffered by claimant.
The CPA also gives government authorities the power to regulate goods and products to ensure consumer safety. Regulations passed under the authority of the CPA do not affect food, water, gas, or controlled drugs. The CPA endows these enforcement authorities with the power to conduct entry and search of businesses, the power to make secret test purchases of goods and products, and the power to apply for forfeiture and seizure of products which violate safety standards. Enforcement authorities also have the power to detain goods; appeals for the detention of goods must be made in the Magistrate’s Court. Failure to abide by safety regulations or to cooperate with an enforcement authority investigation is a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment and/or fines.
