Report from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee – Fourth report on the application of Council Directive 85/374/EEC of 25 July 1985 on the approximation of the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the Member States concerning liability for defective products amended by Directive 1999/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 1999

The purpose of Directive 85/374/EEC is to approximate the laws of the Member States concerning the liability of the producer for damage caused by defective products. The Directive introduces the principle of liability without fault on the part of the producer, whereby any producer of a defective movable must compensate any damage caused to the physical well-being or property of an individual, irrespective of whether or not there is negligence on the part of the individual.

In accordance with Article 21 of the Directive, the Commission must regularly review the effectiveness of the legal framework governing product liability. This is the fourth report on the application of the Directive. It covers the period 2006-2010 and analyses the application of the Directive in the 27 Member States.

EUR-Lex: COM(2011)547: Follow the progress of this document through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2011:547:FIN

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