Description of the issue Related actions andor expectations 2099

48 © ISO 2007 - all rights reserved Box 11, continued 2082  The location for obtaining information is highly visible, easy to access and user friendly, for example 2083 by: 2084  Making documents as short as possible by leaving out extraneous material; 2085  Highlighting critical information; 2086  Organizing information in a logical way, for example moving from the simple to the more 2087 detailed; 2088  Making it easy to find specific information in the document; 2089  Using plain and direct language; and 2090  Using a range of communication tools, including simple graphical illustrations. 2091  Information based on national, regional or international standards and other specifications is provided 2092 on accessibility, for example usability of goods and services for elderly and disabled persons. 2093 2094 6.7.4 Consumer issue 2: Protecting consumers’ health and security 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 50, 56, 77 2095

6.7.4.1 Description of the issue

2096 Consumers have a right to expect that goods and services they procure are safe and do not carry 2097 unreasonable risk of harm when used or consumed as directed, indicated or foreseeably misused. 2098

6.7.4.2 Related actions andor expectations 2099

a Actions that should be taken 2100 An organization should: 2101  Provide goods and services that are not inherently harmful to consumers’ health, their property or the 2102 environment; 2103  Conform to all applicable laws and regulations, as well as to relevant standards and other 2104 specifications relating to health and safety aspects of the goods and services concerned; 2105  Assess the adequacy of such laws, regulations, standards and other specifications to establish that all 2106 health and safety aspects are adequately covered. In particular, in cases where accidents are reported 2107 involving goods or services that conform to the standards or other specifications, the organization 2108 should go beyond these minimum requirements; 2109  Avoid the use of dangerous chemicals. In particular, substances falling in the following categories 2110 should not be used: carcinogenic, mutagenic, toxic for reproduction, persistent and bio-accumulative 2111 PBTs, vPvBs and endocrine disrupters should generally be eliminated. Where heavy metals such as 2112 cadmium Cd, mercury Hg, lead Pb and hexavalent chromium CrVI are used because no 2113 technical alternative exists, these heavy metals should not be found above permitted levels in the 2114 product. The presence of these heavy metals should appear on product labels; 2115  Minimize exposure to all other groups of dangerous chemicals; 2116  Convey vital safety information to consumers, wherever possible using symbols, preferably 2117 internationally agreed symbols, in addition to the textual information; 2118  Instruct consumers in the proper use of goods and inform them of the risks involved in intended or 2119 normally foreseen use; 2120 © ISO 2007 - all rights reserved 49  Accept liability for the impacts of goods and services that cause harm to consumers and compensate 2121 them for damages caused by such deficiencies. To do so, the organization should consider having 2122 sufficient insurance cover to meet its liabilities; 2123  Protect especially vulnerable groups who might not have the capacity to recognize or assess potential 2124 dangers; 2125  Not introduce goods or services where a significant proportion of the population has expressed strong 2126 reservations or even opposition to such goods or services, for example genetically modified food; and 2127 Suppliers, exporters, importers, retailers and other related organizations should adopt measures that 2128 prevent products from becoming unsafe through improper handling or storage while in their care. 2129 b Procedures that should be used when taking the above actions 2130 An organization should: 2131  Set up a system to bring about conformance with applicable laws and regulations, as well as to 2132 relevant standards and other specifications relating to health and safety aspects of the goods and 2133 services concerned; 2134  Establish a monitoring system to register and evaluate any dangerous incidents involving products, to 2135 identify their health and safety risks; 2136  Regularly review chemicals used. Develop a program to eventually replace substances of concern with 2137 less dangerous products. The results of such efforts should be reported; 2138  Take corrective action and modify the product as quickly as possible where health and safety concerns 2139 or breaches of laws or regulations are found; 2140  Minimize risks in the design of products: 2141  Identify the likely user groups and pay special care to vulnerable groups; 2142  Identify the intended use and assess the reasonably foreseeable misuse of the product, 2143 process or service; 2144  Identify each hazard arising in all the stages and conditions of use of the product, process or 2145 service, including installation, maintenance, repair and destructiondisposal, for example 2146 mechanical entrapment, choking, suffocation, etc, chemical, thermal, electrical, acoustic, 2147 drowning; 2148  Estimate and evaluate the risk to each identified usercontact group arising from the hazards 2149 identified; and 2150  Reduce the risk. When reducing risks, the order of priority should be: 2151  Inherently safe design; 2152  Protective devices; 2153  Information for users. 2154  Perform an independent third-party human health risk assessment of goods and services before their 2155 introduction. When new materials andor production methods, for example nanotechnology or genetic 2156 engineering, are used, all relevant documentation should be made publicly available. 2157

6.7.5 Consumer issue 3: Mechanism for product recall 77 2158