New rule to hit GB small businesses selling to NI

Some small businesses in Great Britain will stop selling to customers in Northern Ireland next month as a result of new EU product safety rules.

Northern Ireland effectively remained in the EU’s single market for goods after Brexit.

The means the EU’s new General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) will apply in NI from 13 December.

That creates new requirements for GB businesses selling to NI or the EU, including the need for a ‘responsible person’, which is effectively a compliance agent.

A responsible person is needed for goods which are manufactured outside the EU or Northern Ireland.

They must be based in the EU or NI and are effectively an official point of contact for product compliance and safety issues.

Samantha Paton, from Dundee-based independent fashion brand Isolated Heroes, has been trying to raise awareness of the issue.

She has told the BBC’s PM programme she was pausing new orders to NI and the EU from 12 December until she can figure out how much she can afford to spend on dealing with the new requirements.

She said some service providers are starting to provide responsible person apps but these come at a cost.

"As you start adding your products they’re showing different fees and categories for each product.

"So whether you’re using a direct representative or a third party app there’s going to be a significant cost for small businesses."

Ecommerce platforms are offering advice to sellers, for example eBay has provided its sellers with a list of providers who offer GPSR compliance services.

However this adds a cost which may be uneconomical to small businesses alongside the added bureaucracy of new labelling requirements.

Emails to customers and social media posts seen by the BBC suggest this is a significant issue for small craft businesses.

For example a stationery and illustration business in Manchester has posted on Instagram: "I’m a tiny one-woman business and don’t have the money, resources or time to implement these new rules.

"So I will no longer be able to sell to the EU and Northern Ireland from 13th December. Brexit really is the gift that keeps giving."

The rules also impact people selling through platforms like Amazon and eBay.

The EU has been working on the GPSR since 2020 and it was approved by the European Parliament in May last year.

It updates existing rules and its aims include giving better protections for consumers when shopping online and improving product recalls.

A spokesperson from the department for business and trade said: “We are supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across the whole of the UK to get ready for GPSR and will be publishing more guidance shortly.

"We will keep this under review and continue to engage businesses to ensure they are supported to trade freely."

It is understood the government expects GPSR to have a limited impact on the UK internal market as it largely formalises the reality of how many businesses are already operating.