Consumer protection.

The introduction of the Consumer Protection Act has not resulted in a wave of claims. However, manufacturers must adopt a sensible approach to labelling and providing instruct-ions, say Brendan McCarthy and Rebecca Spillane.

The core principle of the Consumer Protection Act 1987 is that, where
"damage is caused by a defect in a product", the producer is liable to
compensate the injured party. Although this definition suggests that the
act is based on "strict liability", the wording of the act and case law
prove it less pro-consumer than its title suggests.


The introduction of the act was expected to cause an explosion of
litigation, but there have been relatively few cases. However, two recent
actions help illustrate