About Consumer Risk Limited

Our fields of work

Examples of our fields of work include: DIY and vehicle maintenance equipment. Toys. Play and educational equipment. Pushchairs, nursery and childcare products. Choking hazards. Child-resistant features. Domestic glazing, doors and other domestic construction products. Ladders and access equipment. Garden tools. Furniture. Food processors, cooking and kitchen equipment. Heating and lighting. Electrical, gas, oil and solid fuel appliances. Barbecues. Cigarette lighters. Cycles and scooters. Clothing. Protective equipment for consumers. Stairlifts and mobility aids. Exercise and leisure equipment. Packaging. Labels, warnings and instructions. Products and fixtures in rented accommodation, hotels and holiday lettings. Products used in schools and colleges. Hazards in public access areas. We can offer expertise in limiting the risks posed by many types of hazard across many types of consumer products and services because of the factors in common:

Last Updated ( Sunday, 15 February 2009 16:43 ) Read more...

Director/lead consultant

Dr Gordon Hayward, a consultant mechanical and human factors engineer set up Consumer Risk Limited in 1998. Since then he has provided advice, research and training services (either personally or as the leader of a small team) to a wide variety of suppliers of consumer products and services, and to regulatory and standards bodies - in the UK and overseas.

In addition, he is a widely recognised expert witness in which capacity he has personally prepared over a hundred opinions and reports on a wide range of consumer products involved in product liability claims, trading standards prosecutions and commercial disputes, engaged by solicitors for injury claimants, suppliers or trading standards authorities. These cases have ranged from balloons to hammer drills and glazing to children's clothing.

He specialises in mechanical, physical and thermal sources of hazard and human factors issues in the interactions between products and consumers (eg instructions for use, warnings and labels, foreseeable human errors and child behaviour). However he is also very experienced in the duties of suppliers under the General Product Safety Regulations in respect of any type of consumer product (eg diligence in design and testing, monitoring safety complaints, dealing with enforcement bodies and product recalls or withdrawals).

Last Updated ( Friday, 10 February 2012 17:51 ) Read more...

Examples of projects undertaken by Consumer Risk Limited

'Due diligence' audit/advice on consumer safety compliance procedures

eg for:

a major multinational domestic appliance manufacturer,

a UK retailer of sports goods.

a major brand name in chilled confectionery,

a magazine cover mount buyer/importer and

an independent product designer]

Causal human factors-design factors analyses and evaluation of proposed safety measures (requested following reports of incidents) involving:

pushchair locking mechanisms

a supermarket trolley handle

falls between train doorways and platform edges

Risk analyses for product suppliers to (European Commission guidelines) of specific defects discovered after supplying a product batch or model to consumers, with consequent advice on whether (under GPSR) the circumstances required the supplier to notify the enforcement authorities and/or to announce a recall from consumers - eg following complaints received by the supplier from users of

an electric shower control,

a laundry appliance interlock,

a range of hot drink dispensers,

a vacuum cleaner brush head

General hazard analyses and advice on appropriate design or warning measures for product suppliers to take, eg of

waist cord ends on children’s clothes

a folding scooter

an electric skateboard

Drafting general guidance documents (for regulatory or standards bodies)

design of instructions supplied with consumer products

addressing safety of children in general product standards

bite tests methods for products in contact with children.

Strategic studies and advice

Studies (for European Commission) recommending strategies to monitor safety of cross-border tourist and leisure services and estimating the scale of injuries.

Study (for European Commission) of the comparative protection offered by the technical requirements in Netherlands Ladder Regulations and the European Standard for Ladders

Strategic reviews for UK government of consumer product chemical safety support consultancy and of methods for monitoring fatal accidents.

Advising retail organisations on submitting comments on proposed UK legislative changes

Compilation and analyses of statistics on

impact on consumer safety complaints to UK of changes to contact agencies

impact of trading standards powers to order product safety recalls in UK

impact on accidents involving toys of changes to EU Directive

trends in prosecutions under UK product safety legislation

trends in fatal home and leisure accidents

trends in firework injury data

Expert Witness work (links to individual experts)

Dr Gordon Hayward (Director of Consumer Risk Ltd)

Last Updated ( Thursday, 16 February 2012 16:23 )

Contact details

Consumer Risk Limited

83 STATION ROAD FINCHLEY LONDON N3 2SH ENGLAND

e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Tel +44 (0) 208 343 1754

Fax +44 (0) 208 343 1754

UK company registration number: 03658564

VAT reg.no.: 815 5300 56

Last Updated ( Friday, 10 February 2012 11:52 )

Only as much input as you want

The Consumer Risk Limited business model allows product suppliers and public agencies to obtain only as much (or as little) input from outside experts as is needed to help the in-house staff deal with a particular problem arsing at a particular time. We respond to your problems and needs by suggesting the most appropriate expert to contact for an exploratory discussion. If they are suitable you can then engage that person at an hourly or daily rate. For projects needing more resources we may put together a small team, a work plan and a quoted a price for delivering a report, a training session or a design solution - as required.

The people who know most about the safety of a product should be those working in its supply chain (in design manufacture, import, commercial procurement or retail quality control). Independent consultants are no substitute for an in-house executuve who beomes the expert on every aspect of safety of a product by keeping up with relevant legislation, standards, sector developments and customer complaints - as well as quality monitoring and risk assessment of new designs.

However, there will be occassions when the in-hous e all-rounder needs the support of a second opinion, or advice based on broader experience of the hazards that products (or their users) can pose, the design of instructions and warnings, the interpretation of standards, application of the laws on product liability, dealing with trading standards or deciding when it is necessary to withdraw or recall products found to have safety defects.

Last Updated ( Friday, 10 February 2012 11:48 ) Read more...

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