Lead story

ANEC and BEUC on Safety Gate

The EC’s latest Safety Gate report reveals a troubling rise in unsafe non-food products across the EU. With a record 4,137 alerts issued in 2024 - nearly a 50% increase compared with 2022 - consumer groups are seeking urgent regulatory action and stronger enforcement, especially in the fast-growing world of online marketplaces.
According to the report, cosmetics and toys top the list of most frequently reported product categories, with dangerous chemicals and injury risks as the most common hazards. The vast majority of these unsafe products originate from outside the EU, often entering the market through e-commerce platforms.

In a joint press release, ANEC and BEUC warn that the spike in notifications highlights critical regulatory loopholes and a lack of resources for market surveillance authorities. BEUC Director-General Agustín Reyna emphasised the need for not just better funding and staffing, but also stronger legal tools to hold online marketplaces accountable. “Market surveillance authorities not only need more financial, technical and human resources but also stronger legal enforcement powers,” Reyna stated. “Online marketplaces must be liable when no responsible economic operator exists in the EU.”

ANEC echoed these concerns, with Director-General Stephen Russell calling for pan-European enforcement powers to complement regulation and standards. “We need to complete the tripod of protection for the consumer: regulation, standards, and enforcement,” he said.
The Consumer Safety Gateway now allows EU citizens to report unsafe products directly to authorities, enhancing transparency and public engagement. Meanwhile, the new General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) is set to strengthen collaboration between authorities and consumer organisations, which frequently uncover non-compliant products through independent testing.
As online shopping continues to grow, ANEC and BEUC stress the need for a modernised legal framework, including a Digital Fairness Act, to better protect consumers from misleading and unsafe online practices.

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AUWP 2026

One of the core responsibilities of the European Commission’s High-Level Forum on Standardisation (HLFS), of which ANEC is a member, is to identify future areas for standardisation and support the setting and implementation of annual priorities. These efforts aim to advance a green, digital, fair, and resilient Single Market. The Forum also helps identify and address urgent standardisation needs, in line with Commission Decision COM(2022) 6189.

In this context, the European Commission (EC) has launched a survey to gather contributions from Forum members for the preparation of the Annual Union Work Programme for European Standardisation (AUWP) for 2026. The AUWP serves as the legal basis for future EC standardisation requests under the Standardisation Regulation.

ANEC has submitted the following five priority actions for consideration in the 2026 AUWP:

• Action 1 'Products intended to be worn by children'
• Action 2 ‘Sports, playground and recreational equipment and services’
• Action 3 'Privacy and security requirements for metaverse and e-gaming applications’
• Action 4 ‘Anthropometric measures /methods about persons with disabilities'
• Action 5 ‘Ecodesign and energy labelling of computers’

These priorities reflect ANEC’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that European standards support safety, inclusiveness, digital trust, and environmental sustainability for all consumers.

Child Safety 

Safe Play for Children

In a historic move to better protect children across Europe, the European Parliament (EP) and the Council reached a provisional agreement in April on a new Toy Safety Regulation (TSR). In a joint media release, ANEC and BEUC welcomed the deal, which significantly strengthens EU rules on toy safety and addresses emerging risks, particularly from chemicals and digital technologies.

Following the agreement, toys sold in the EU must be free from cancer-causing chemicals, endocrine disruptors, PFAS, and 34 bisphenols. This marks the first global ban of hormone-disrupting substances from an entire product group. Stricter limits will also apply to nitrosamines and allergenic substances in toys for children under 36 months.

A major innovation is the introduction of a Digital Product Passport (DPP) for all toys. This should improve product traceability and streamline customs and market surveillance checks, helping to keep dangerous toys off the market.

The agreement also breaks new ground by requiring that digitally connected toys be assessed for their impact on children's mental health. Smart toys featuring AI, speech, video, or location-tracking capabilities will be subject to higher safety standards under related EU digital laws like the AI Act and Cyber Resilience Act.

Other key improvements include:

• Applying the precautionary principle directly within the regulation’s scope.
• Stronger noise limits, aligned with occupational safety standards.
• Clearer labelling and warning systems with standardized pictograms.
• Inclusion of adaptive toys for children with disabilities - an international first in safety legislation.

However, concerns remain about the limited obligations for online marketplaces and the extended timeline before the new rules take full effect - now delayed to 54 months.

Despite these issues, BEUC and ANEC see the agreement as a milestone. In the common media release, ANEC Director General Stephen Russell said, “Children are among the most vulnerable consumers. These new rules represent a huge step forward in making toys safer, both physically and digitally”.

As the regulation moves toward formal adoption, we urge national authorities to allocate the resources needed for strong enforcement - especially to ensure compliance in online markets.

“Now it’s time for action,” said BEUC Director General Agustín Reyna. “We need to make sure these strong rules deliver what they promise: safe play for every child in Europe.”

Accessibility

ANEC Accessibility WG meets

On 5-6 May 2025, we were pleased to welcome our experts in the ANEC Accessibility Working Group to Brussels for its 38^th meeting. The two-day agenda covered a wide range of topics critical to accessibility standardisation, including: Accessibility of lifts; the built environment; and assistive products & services; updates on European Accessibility Act standardisation (M/587), including the and revision of standards; as well as discussions on Design for All, ergonomics, AI & accessibility, and support services.

We were also delighted to welcome Ima Placencia, Senior Expert at DG JUST, who spoke about the implementation of the European Accessibility Act Standardisation Request (SReq). Our colleagues also appreciated a presentation on AI standardisation and accessibility by Kave Noori, Artificial Intelligence Policy Officer at the European Disability Forum (EDF). We must our members, experts and speakers for their participation and fruitful discussions.

Digital Society

AI Standards Hub Workshop

On 22 April 2025, the AI Standards Hub hosted a workshop on AI risk management standards, bringing together experts from across sectors to discuss aligning AI standardisation and fundamental rights.

The workshop started with a presentation from the CEN-CENELEC-JTC21 WG2 convenors the on-going work on the AI Risk Management standard. It then continued with the challenges in defining "risk" across diverse contexts and those in integrating fundamental rights into risk-based AI governance.

The workshop also addressed the role of civil society in shaping inclusive standards. Equinet looked at the fundamental rights perspective, and ETUC elaborated on the risks for workers and working environments. ANEC spoke about its efforts in inclusivity via its activity in the JTC 21 WGs developing the future European Harmonised Standards and JTC21’s TG Inclusiveness where it has been recently appointed co-chair. We concluded by drawing attention to the creation of our the new ANEC AI Taskforce.

The workshop emphasised the need for flexible, rights-respecting AI standards and the importance of continued multi-stakeholder collaboration.

ANEC AI Task Force

Thanks to funding from the European AI & Society Fund (EAISF), ANEC has been able to launch a new AI Taskforce for consumer professionals. The AI Taskforce was created early February and has 9 members from 8 countries (Austria, Germany, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Greece, Spain and Italy).

The Taskforce aims at providing capacity building on AI standardisation and preparing its members to become active at national level in the mirror committees of CEN-CLC JTC21 on AI, developing the AI Act Standards.

The kick-off meeting was organised on 28-29 April in Brussels. Members appreciated the training event and the opportunity to exchange with representatives from the European Commission’s AI Office and from CEN-CENELEC.

As a follow up, the AI Task Force will join the ANEC AI experts in drafting comments on AI standards for use at national level.

ANEC Webinar on AI Standards and Fundamental Rights

On April 9, 2025, ANEC hosted a webinar on "How can AI standards deal with the risks to Fundamental Rights?".The event explored how the EU AI Act’s risk-based approach relies on harmonized standards to ensure AI systems respect fundamental rights.

Speakers from the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) and ANEC discussed the challenge of translating principles like privacy and non-discrimination into technical standards. They emphasized the need for continuous risk assessment and flexibility in standards to address AI’s evolving nature.

The event underlined the role of civil society and public organizations in shaping the AI standards, ensuring they protect consumer interests and respect their fundamental rights. The webinar drew a lot of interest and had over 130 registrations and 78 attendees.

We thank European AI & Society Fund for its funding that made this event possible. For more details see ANEC's event page here.

Sustainability

ANEC on EPCs

Consumers need more reliable Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) to make informed decisions about their homes, and help move towards more energy efficient, healthy and sustainable buildings.

ANEC has developed key recommendations for EPCs and the implementation of the latest EPBD. We propose ways to improve the methodology, provide more consumer-friendly information and a cost-effective tool. We also emphasise the role of standards to support policy in the next steps turning the EPBD into action.

You can find out more in our Position Paper and Leaflet. These materials have been developed by ANEC under the EU-funded SmartLivingEPC project.

Services

ANEC Services WG meets

The ANEC Services WG held its annual meeting on 23-24 April 2025. Included among a range of topics for discussion included were the 2025 & 2026 ANEC Services Work Programmes; Fire safety awareness and call for a European Fire Safety Strategy; the impact of the Universal Service Obligation on vulnerable consumers; online services from the sharing economy to clearer terms & conditions; trustworthy online reviews and safer tourism & leisure services; updates on financial services; and (last but not least) healthcare access across borders and citizen security.

BEUC joined us to speak about online reviews, while DG SANTE and DG GROW spoke on cross-border healthcare and postal services legislation respectively. Students from the Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS) presented the results of their research for ANEC on the Postal Services Directive.

Impact of Universal Service Obligations

ANEC is pleased to share the results of the Applied Research Project, “The Impact of the Implementation of the Universal Service Obligation on Vulnerable Consumers – A Comparative Analysis of European Member States and Abroad.” 

Commissioned by the ANEC Services WG and developed by The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS), this study was carried out within the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding between ANEC and THUAS - an agreement supporting the High-Level Forum on Standardisation (HLFS) pledge on education and skills in standards.

The research was conducted by Ms Leonie Doerpighaus, a THUAS student, under the supervision of ANEC Expert, Dr Orsolya Tokaji-Nagy, Coordinator of the EU Law Professional Advisory Committee and Lecturer in European Union Business Law.

The report offers a timely and insightful comparative analysis of how Universal Service Obligations (USOs) in the postal sector are applied across selected EU Member States and non-EU countries, with a strong focus on their impact on vulnerable consumers.

ANEC will use the findings to shape its contributions to the upcoming revision of the Postal Services Directive and related standardisation efforts. Our goal is to ensure that consumer interests -especially those of the most vulnerable - remain central in future policy developments. Read the full report and the executive summary.

ANEC replies to ERGP

ANEC was invited by DG GROW to comment on the European Regulators Group for Postal Services ERGP report on the outline of the future postal services regulatory framework.

The European Commission and ERGP specifically invited views on:

• The principles of future postal regulation outlined in the report.
• Which recommendations should be prioritised to support an evolving postal market.
• The scope and definitions of a future regulatory framework.
• The definition of the Universal Postal Service

In response, ANEC prepared the position paper, ANEC Response to the Consultation on the ERGP Report on the Outline of the Future Postal Services Regulatory Framework.

This response reflects ANEC’s longstanding commitment to ensuring that consumer rights - particularly those of vulnerable groups - remain central to any future regulatory developments in the postal sector. Our submission incorporates key findings and recommendations from the Final Applied Research Project (ARP) conducted by The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS) for ANEC: “The Impact of the Implementation of the Universal Service Obligation on Vulnerable Consumers – A Comparative Analysis of European Member States and Abroad.”

Through this combined evidence, ANEC advocates for a redefinition of the Universal Postal Service that meets the real needs of today’s consumers, including digital inclusion, accessibility, and territorial cohesion.

News from ANEC member countries

Denmark - Waterproof jackets contain PFAS

A new test by the Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals reveals that many cheap waterproof jackets - especially softshell and windbreakers – sold through Amazon, Shein, and Temu contain harmful PFAS. These substances are often used to achieve water-and-dirt resistance but pose serious risks to health and the environment.

26 jackets sold in Denmark and online were tested to compare PFAS content in garments sold within and outside the EU. Read more about the test on Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals website.

Portugal - APSI Celebrates the 9th National Child Safety Day with “Play Streets”

On 23 May, APSI (our Portuguese member of the Child Safety and Traffic & Mobility WGs) celebrated the 9th edition of the National Child Safety Day (DNSI) with the inspiring initiative “Play Streets” – or “Ruas que Brincam” in Portuguese. Across the country, selected streets are being temporarily closed to traffic, giving children the rare and joyful opportunity to play freely and safely in public spaces.

With the invaluable support of schools, this year’s activity turns everyday streets into vibrant places for exploration, creativity and social connection. “Play Streets” allows children to experience their local environment without the noise and hazards of traffic, encouraging them to engage more actively and confidently with the world around them.

This initiative also serves to promote key values such as active mobility, community participation and child visibility in urban spaces. It provides a moment for schools and neighbourhoods to come together, rethinking how streets can serve everyone – especially children.

The first fifty classes to register, in line with DNSI regulations, received a specially prepared DNSI Kit. These kits contain both informative and interactive materials, designed to help pupils connect with the DNSI 2025 theme and make the most of today’s event.

To help spread the word, APSI has also provided a promotional image for sharing across digital platforms and community channels.

As children fill the streets with play and laughter today, APSI celebrates their right to safety, freedom and participation in public life. This year’s DNSI stands as a powerful reminder that child-friendly cities begin with streets that welcome and protect their youngest citizens.

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