Product complaints (VGK)

Product complaints.

It's never fun when you receive complaints about your products. You wonder what the reason for the complaint was. Maybe your instructions for use are unclear, your product was misused or something unforeseen happened after all.

Have you received a complaint?

What you must do when you receive a complaint about your product is stipulated in the General Product Safety Directive 2001/95. This directive describes the obligations for each type of economic operator. The directive describes the following types of economic operators:

1. Producer
2. Distributor

You are considered a producer if you are the manufacturer of the product or if the product trades under your own brand name. It also states that you are classified as a producer if you do not produce the product yourself or sell it under your own brand name, but you import it into the European Union.

When you are classified as a producer, you have extensive responsibility in the complaint process.

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or call BE +32 (0)3 616 08 69

What can we help our clients with?

Set up and manage complaints administration.
Complaint assessment & cause analysis.
Establish corrective actions.
Risk Assessment.
Setup and support for recall procedure.

What are your obligations?

As a producer, you must comply with these obligations:

1. Registering complaints.

You must record all incoming complaints in your complaint records. These records should allow you to do analysis on product complaints. These records should form a conclusive whole from receiving the complaint to closing the complaint.

2. Investigating complaints.

After registering a complaint in your complaint system, you must assess the complaint and try to identify the cause of the complaint. From our experience, complaints fall into two main categories:

Complaints about the quality of your product. This involves the product not meeting your buyer's expectations.
Complaints about the safe use of your product. An unforeseen risk to the safety of your customer has arisen in the process.

Complaints about the quality of your product are annoying because you are dealing with a disappointed customer. That was never your intention. This type of complaint also contains valuable information about your buyers' needs. They tell you through their complaint what they expected from your product. When your complaint system works well, you get clear directions for your product development. This is how you make a virtue of necessity.

Complaints about the safe use of your product must be investigated with the urgency appropriate to the risk. In addition to a theoretical assessment of the complaint received, the product that is the subject of the complaint must be examined in order to determine the cause of the complaint and thereby determine the risk. Complaints in this category can be divided into the following three subcategories:

I) Incidental complaint

The complaint arose from an occasional manufacturing defect or damage during transport. The probability of the complaint occurring more frequently is negligible. You record your investigation and its results in your complaint records. You do not have to take corrective action.

II) User error

The complaint occurred because the product was not used according to the instructions. The probability of the complaint occurring more often is negligible. The product itself is safe and meets all product safety requirements. You record your investigation and its results in your complaint records. You do not have to take corrective action.

III) Reproducible complaint

The complaint can be mimicked. There is a high probability that the complaint will occur more often. You must take corrective action to prevent more of your customers from being exposed to this risk. You record your investigation, associated results and your corrective actions in your complaint records.

3. Taking corrective action.

Several corrective actions can be mentioned, for example:

You adjust the user manual of your product. With this modification, the observed user errors can be avoided.
You modify the product. By modifying the design of the product, you eliminate the identified risks.
You stop selling the product. The risk of your product is great enough to stop further marketing and thus distribution of your product.
You recall the item. The risk of your product is so great that further use by customers must be stopped immediately. To carry out a recall you must also contact the government, in the Netherlands the NVWA or in Belgium the FAVV .

Our approach.

We have worked for many years as quality consultants for major international parties in the supply chain. We have handled almost all types of non-food items. We can help you by working together to set up your complaint and product recall procedure and a process to continuously analyze common customer complaints.

If a recall is the only right solution, we're here for you, too. With support in drafting the notification to the regulator and the text for the recall. Our experience shows that a change in mentality within the organization is the most important factor for success. To this end, we offer training that makes your employees aware and helps them determine the right actions when an unsafe product is discovered.