Manufacturer product liability and recall toolkit — 2026
Category: Resources · Reviewed by the Apex broking team · Last reviewed 2026-08-22 · ~9 min read
How to use this resource
Work through it in the order below and you will end up with three things: a clear view of which legal regime catches your business, a list of the documents you would need in the first forty-eight hours of an incident, and a short set of questions to put to your broker at renewal. It is a reference, not a substitute for advice on a specific product or a live incident.
Part 1: strict liability under the Consumer Protection Act 1987
Part I of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 imposes liability without proof of negligence. Section 2(1) provides that where damage is caused wholly or partly by a defect in a product, every person to whom section 2(2) applies is liable for the damage. Section 2(2) identifies three categories: the producer of the product; any person who has held themselves out to be the producer by putting their name or trade mark on it; and any person who has imported the product into the United Kingdom in order to supply it in the course of a business.
That second category is why own-branding matters so much commercially. A business that puts its own label on goods made by someone else takes on producer liability for them. The third category is why importers cannot treat product safety as the overseas manufacturer’s problem.
The supplier trap. Section 2(3) can pull an ordinary supplier into liability. Where a person injured by a defective product asks a supplier to identify the producer, own-brander or importer, and the supplier fails within a reasonable period either to comply or to identify its own supplier, the supplier becomes liable itself. In practice this makes traceability records a legal defence, not just a quality-system nicety.
What counts as a defect. Section 3(1) provides that there is a defect if the safety of the product is not such as persons generally are entitled to expect. Section 3(2) requires all the circumstances to be taken into account, including the way the product was marketed, its get-up, the use of any mark, any instructions or warnings given with it; what might reasonably be expected to be done with or in relation to it; and the time when the producer supplied it. Warnings and instructions are therefore part of the legal safety of the product, not an add-on to it.
Defences. Section 4(1) provides a closed list, including that the defect is attributable to compliance with a legal requirement; that the defendant did not at any time supply the product to another; that the supply was not in the course of a business; that the defect did not exist in the product at the relevant time; the development risks defence, that the state of scientific and technical knowledge at the relevant time was not such that a producer might be expected to have discovered the defect; and, for a component, that the defect was wholly attributable to the design of the finished product or to compliance with the finished-product producer’s instructions.
Limitation. Section 11A of the Limitation Act 1980 sets a three-year period running from the later of the accrual of the cause of action and the date of knowledge, subject to an absolute ten-year longstop from the relevant time, which extinguishes the right of action regardless of knowledge.
Part 2: the product safety regime in Great Britain, as at August 2026
The general safety framework in Great Britain remains the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/1803), which continue in force. They sit alongside, rather than replace, sector-specific regimes — toys, machinery, electrical equipment, cosmetics, construction products, medical devices and others each have their own instruments and conformity requirements, and where a sectoral regime applies it generally governs.
The Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025 received Royal Assent in 2025. It is important to be precise about what it does: it is a framework or enabling Act. It confers powers on the Secretary of State to make secondary legislation about product regulation and metrology; it does not itself rewrite the substantive duties on producers. The practical position for a manufacturer in August 2026 is therefore that the existing instruments continue to apply, and that change will arrive through regulations made under the 2025 Act. Anyone building a compliance plan for the next few years should treat this as a moving area and re-check the position rather than relying on a snapshot.
Enforcement and market surveillance in Great Britain is coordinated by the Office for Product Safety and Standards. Producers and distributors who know or ought to know that a product they have placed on the market poses risks incompatible with the general safety requirement are expected to notify the enforcement authorities and to take appropriate action; the OPSS publishes guidance on how notifications are made and what information is expected.
Part 3: what the insurance actually does
Products liability is third-party cover. It responds to legal liability for injury to people or damage to property caused by a product you have supplied. It is the policy that answers a Consumer Protection Act claim. It generally does not pay for the cost of the product itself, for putting the defective work right, or for the cost of getting the product back.
Product recall is first-party cover. It funds the cost of the recall operation itself — identifying and tracing affected stock, communication, transport, storage, disposal or rework, and the specialist advice needed to run it. Wordings vary substantially in what triggers cover: some respond only to a recall required to prevent bodily injury or property damage, others extend to regulatory-mandated recalls or to voluntary action.
The gap between them is where most disappointment lives. A defect discovered before anyone is hurt produces no third-party liability claim, but produces an immediate and expensive operational problem. Businesses that carry only products liability find that the entire cost of doing the right thing quickly falls on them.
Related covers worth understanding rather than buying reflexively: product guarantee and financial loss extensions, brand rehabilitation or crisis communication cover, and contamination cover for food and drink manufacturers. Each addresses a specific gap, and none is a substitute for the two core policies.
Part 4: the first forty-eight hours
The response that goes well is almost always the one that was written down in advance. The sequence that works is: stabilise, preserve, notify, investigate.
Stabilise. Stop further supply of the affected batch or serial range immediately. That decision is reversible; continuing to ship is not.
Preserve. Quarantine samples, retain production and inspection records, and preserve correspondence. Evidence lost in the first day cannot be recreated later, and it is what both the defence and any recovery against a supplier will be built from.
Notify. Tell your broker and insurer at once — before deciding on a recall, not after. Many recall wordings require the insurer’s prior consent to costs, and a decision announced before the insurer is told can prejudice cover. In parallel, assess the regulatory notification obligation.
Investigate. Establish the root cause, the affected population and the traceability boundary. The width of a recall is decided by the quality of your batch, serial and date-code records.
Part 5: renewal questions worth asking
Does the products liability policy cover the territories you actually sell into, and does it distinguish between where a product is sold and where a claim may be brought? Exports to the United States and Canada are usually treated separately and need to be declared.
Is recall cover included, and what triggers it — injury or damage only, a regulatory instruction, or a reasonable belief of risk? What is the sub-limit and how does it interact with the main limit?
Does the policy respond to own-brand goods you did not manufacture? Under section 2(2)(b) you carry producer liability for them, so the cover needs to match.
How far back does cover reach for products supplied in earlier years, and what happens if you change insurer? Products liability is usually written on an occurrence basis, but not invariably — check.
Frequently asked questions
Who is liable under Part I of the Consumer Protection Act 1987?
Under section 2(2), the producer of the product; anyone who has held themselves out as the producer by putting their name or trade mark on it; and anyone who imported the product into the United Kingdom in order to supply it in the course of a business. Liability is strict, so the claimant does not have to prove negligence. Section 2(3) can also make an ordinary supplier liable if it fails to identify who did.
Is the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 regime still in force in Great Britain?
Yes. As at August 2026 the General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/1803) remain the general product safety framework in Great Britain, alongside sector-specific regimes. The Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025 is an enabling Act that allows new regulations to be made; it does not itself replace the existing duties, so the position should be re-checked as secondary legislation is brought forward.
Does products liability insurance pay for a recall?
Generally not. Products liability responds to legal liability for injury or property damage caused by a product. The cost of tracing, retrieving, communicating and disposing of affected stock is what product recall cover is for. Many manufacturers hold the first and assume it covers the second.
How long can a Consumer Protection Act claim be brought?
Section 11A of the Limitation Act 1980 sets a three-year period running from the later of the date the cause of action accrued and the date of knowledge, subject to an overall ten-year longstop from the relevant time, after which the right of action is extinguished.
What is the development risks defence?
It is the defence in section 4(1)(e) of the Consumer Protection Act 1987: that the state of scientific and technical knowledge at the relevant time was not such that a producer of products of the same description as the product in question might be expected to have discovered the defect if it had existed in their products while under their control.
Sources
- Consumer Protection Act 1987 Part I — legislation.gov.uk
- Consumer Protection Act 1987 section 4 (defences)
- General Product Safety Regulations 2005, SI 2005/1803
- Product Regulation and Metrology Act 2025
- Limitation Act 1980 section 11A
- Office for Product Safety and Standards
This page is general insurance information, not legal advice, and describes the position as at August 2026. Cover depends on the wording of the policy actually in force. Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Apex Insurance Brokers Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 724952). This page is general information, not advice on a specific policy.