GREECE Law and Practice Contributed by: Dimitris Emvalomenos, Bahas, Gramatidis & Partners LLP
1.5 Penalties for Breach of Product Safety Obligations The penalties for breach of the key obligations for product safety and related obligations were updated and expanded upon in 2023 (Articles 13 (a)–13 (i) of Law 2251, as revised by Law 5019/2023; see 2.16 Existence of Class Actions, Representative Pro- ceedings or Co-Ordinated Proceedings in Product Liability Claims ). As an overview, subject to the provisions of the Criminal Code and the “Rules Regulating the Mar - ket of Products and the Provision of Services” (Law 4177/2013, in force), the following sanctions may be imposed by a decision of the competent organ of the Ministry (see 1.2 Regulatory Authorities for Product Safety ), acting either ex officio or after a filed com - plaint: • a recommendation for compliance within a speci - fied deadline and an order to cease the infringe - ment and refrain from it in the future; or • a fine of between EUR5,000 and EUR1.5 million. The fine may reach a maximum of EUR3 million if, within the last five years, more than one decision imposing fines has been issued against the same infringer for breaches of Law 2251 (or of other laws referring to Law 2251 for the imposition of a fine). For the imposition of the above sanctions, certain cri - teria are indicatively listed, including any sanctions imposed previously on the same infringer for the same breach in other EU member states regarding trans-boundary cases, if relevant information is avail - able under Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 “on coopera - tion between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws” as in force (current consolidation version of 12 September 2025). Also, when the Greek regulatory authorities are to impose penalties under Article 21 of the same Regu - lation for “widespread infringements” or “widespread infringements with a Union dimension”, the maximum fine may be up to 4% of the infringer’s annual turno - ver in the relevant EU member state and, if there is no information on such turnover, it could reach EUR5 million.
and other persons as a case may be, for the constant monitoring of the products’ safety and immediate actions where a dangerous product is noticed (Arti - cles 9–16). In case of accidents related to safety of products, the economic operators must act “without undue delay” (Articles 20 and 35–37). Special obliga - tions are imposed on economic operators in case of distance sales (Article 19) and on providers of online marketplaces (Article 22). The European Commission’s “Safety Business Gate - way” to report dangerous products to the member state authorities (see Safety Business Gateway ; for - merly known as the GPSD Business Application), enables businesses to report dangerous products and accidents to the market surveillance authorities of the member states and such reporting is compulsory under the GPSR (Article 27). National authorities may use the information submit - ted on the Safety Business Gateway to create an alert in the Safety Gate Rapid Alert System (see 1.2 Regu- latory Authorities for Product Safety ). A summary of that information is then also published on the Safety Gate public portal. The submission of notifications through the Safety Business Gateway is only reserved for the economic operators and providers of online marketplaces con - cerned by the notified product, thus not by third par - ties. In case a dangerous product is already sold, economic operators must take the necessary measures, includ - ing its recall, if necessary, while providers of online marketplaces must notify all affected consumers of the product safety recall and publish information on such recalls on their online interfaces. In case of a recall, the notice by the economic opera - tors must contain all mandatory elements listed in the GPSR. A recommended template is provided: see Safety Gate: the EU rapid alert system for dangerous non-food products.
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