Commission de sécurité des consommateurs

PRESENTATION OF THE CONSUMER SAFETY COMMISSION

"THE CONSUMER SAFETY COMMISSION CAN HELP YOU IF YOU ARE FACED WITH DANGEROUS PRODUCTS OR SERVICES"

WHAT IS THE CONSUMER SAFETY COMMISSION ?

Its status

The CSC is an independant public authority which has been created by the Law (July 21, 1983) related to consumer safety.

Its composition

The CSC is composed of :

- A President, named for 5 years by the President of the Republic,

- 15 members named for 3 years by the minister in charge of consumers : 

• 3 members representing the Council of State, the Audit Office and the final Court of Appeal; 
• 3 members of the national consumer organisations, 
• 3 members chosen among the professionnals (recommended by a body of professionnals belonging to the consumers national council) 
• 6 skilled experts

- A government commissioner named by the minister in charge of the consumers.

- Civil servants and magistrates assist the Commission in its work as technical advisors, one of them is designated by the President to be the General Secretary of the Commission

Its missions

The CSC has three main missions :

• To issue recommendations and suggest any measure to better the prevention of risks as regards the safety of products and services;
• 
  In order to draw up its opinions, the CSC can ask for any piece of information or examine on the spot all the documents it thinks necessary to carry its mission. It can ask for technical investigations to be held by agreed laboratories. It can hear any person that can give an information on the cases the Commission is inquiring about.
  
  When the opinions are passed at a plenary session, they are sent to public authorities and professionals so that the necessary measures advised by the Commission could be taken.
  
  Since its creation, the CSC has adopted more than 350 recommendations.
  
  
• To bring to the public’s knowledge all the information the Commission thinks necessary
• The CSC has to inform consumers against dangerous products or services. Messages are sent through press releases, spots on TV, flash news on its website. Every time the CSC issues a recommendation, it publishes a press release.
  
  In its mission of information to the consumers, the CSC publishes the following documents :
  ◘ a periodical letter;
  ◘ cards with practical advice and specific prevention leaflets
  ◘ a yearly report
  
  Besides, the CSC launches prevention campaigns regularly. They generally concern everyday life accidents like, for instance the risk of drowning, skying and snowboarding, domestic fires...
  
  
• To search and make a list of all data on the dangers presented by products or services

YOU CAN SEIZE THE CSC

Who can send a notification to the CSC ?

Any person : natural person or legal entity : individual consumers, consumers associations, public authorities, professionals, judiciary authorities...

Moreover, the CSC can decide by itself to investigate and to prepare a recommendation on a specific safety issue through a self request.

How to proceed?

Simply by writing a letter to the President of the Commission explaining as precisely as possible the circumstances of the risk or the circumstances of the accident if it happened. Give as many details as possible especially concerning the references of the service or the product involved (brand name, model number, date and place of purchase...).

You can send this notification to the following address :

Commission de la sécurité des consommateurs 
Immeuble Atrium, 5, place des Vins de Franxce

75573 PARIS CEDX 12 

You can also fill in the electronic questionnaire on the CSC website.