Agenda item

To receive a report updating members on the implementation and interim results of the Trading Standards Service’s participation in an online marketplace product safety project for the London Trading Standards (LTS) Region.

The Board received a report presented by Paul Lee, (Senior Enforcement Officer, Brent Council), providing Members with a briefing on the implementation and interim results of the Trading Standards Service’s participation in an online marketplace product safety project for the London Trading Standards (LTS) Region.

In considering the report the Joint Board noted:

·             The LTS region was comprised of 32 London member Boroughs with many of these having individual officers who were involved in specialised groups that reflected the main areas of Trading Standards work. The LTS product safety group had been involved in many projects in recent years including the following, part worn tyres, skin lightening cosmetics, after market phone chargers and toy safety projects.

·             The project undertaken in 2022 had been focussed (in order to make the best use of available resources) on identifying non-compliant and unsafe products sold via the two large online marketplaces, AMAZON and eBay, with both of these suppliers having Primary Authority Agreements with two local authorities, which helped to facilitate the removal of any unsafe goods in an efficient manner and in many cases, immediately.  Members were advised the Service had already worked with eBay prior to the project, so had also been able to utilise pre-existing relationships.

·             As further background on the project, Members were advised that the brief had prioritised certain products based on intelligence and previous complaints received.  These had indicated high levels of concern over products such as skin lightening cosmetics and unlicensed products purporting to be cosmetics, phone chargers, mothballs and electrical adapters with the project aimed as providing a simplified route for the removal of unsafe goods from supply chains and protection of online consumers.  Details of the range of unsafe products which it had been identified and removed from sale as a result had been included within Appendix A of the report, with a number of products having been shipped from outside the UK.

·             As a result of the project, the Service to date, had requested the removal of over 1,300 listings relating to over 2,000 individual products with it due to end in March 2023.  As result of the type of issues being identified, a number of products and practices had also been reported to the Office of Product Safety and Standards who as a result were currently undertaking their own supply chain investigations and sampling project.

·             The use of feedback supplied through the project by both website suppliers to identify potential issues with their compliance procedures and enhance their systems designed to automatically identify illegal items being listed by sellers and to remove seller accounts where continued non-compliance had been identified.  Whilst recognising the difficulties in tackling personal rather than business seller accounts, work continued with both websites to ensure the necessary action was taken to ensure only safe products were being listed with the final results of the project to be publicised once it had ended.

In reviewing the priorities identified, the Board made the following comments:

·             Members thanked officers for the work undertaken to date through the project to remove unsafe and dangerous items out of the public domain and were keen to explore the potential for a more local focus in addition to the regionally basis of the project.  In response, Members were advised that whilst the businesses being targeted were not based in Brent or Harrow the majority of products removed were available and being sold to consumers in both Boroughs, hence the support being provided for the project particularly given the unsafe nature of many of the products.

Once again the Joint Board welcomed the report and in expressing support for the project thanked officers for the report and RESOLVED to note and endorse the update provided in relation to the Brent and Harrow Trading Standards Service.