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Consumer Protection
(Trade Descriptions and Safety
Requirements) Act 1975

2020 REVISED EDITION

This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021

An Act to make provisions prohibiting misdescriptions of goods supplied in the course of trade; to confer power to prescribe requirements relating to informative marking and advertisement of goods and to their safe composition, construction or design, and for purposes connected therewith.

[1 August 1975]

PART 1

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act is the Consumer Protection (Trade Descriptions and Safety Requirements) Act 1975.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“advertisement” includes a catalogue, a circular and a price list;

“Director” means the Director of Consumer Protection appointed under section 3;

“goods” includes ships, aircraft, vehicles, animals, plants and all kinds of movable property;

“premises” includes any place, stall, ship, aircraft or vehicle;

“supply” includes offer to supply or having goods in possession for the purpose of supply;

“trade description” means any description, statement or indication which, directly or indirectly and by whatever means given, relates to any of the following matters:

(a)	quantity, length, width, height, area, volume, capacity or weight of any goods;
(b)	method of manufacture, production, processing or reconditioning of any goods;
(c)	composition of any goods;
(d)	fitness for purpose (including expiry date), strength, performance, behaviour or accuracy of any goods;
(e)	degree of fineness of gold and silver goods;
(f)	physical characteristics of any goods not included in paragraphs (a) to (e);
(g)	testing of any goods by any person and the results of such testing;
(h)	approval of any goods by any person or their conformity with a type approved by any person;
(i)	place or date of manufacture, production, processing or reconditioning of any goods;
(j)	person by whom any goods are manufactured, produced, processed or reconditioned;
(k)	other history, including previous ownership or use, of any goods.

(2) Where any trade description is subject to the provisions of the written laws specified in the Schedule, the provisions of this Act do not have effect in relation to any such description which is applied in accordance with the requirements of that written law.

(3) The Minister may, by order in the Gazette, amend the Schedule.

(4) For the purposes of this Act, a trade description published in any newspaper, book or periodical or in any film or sound or television broadcast is not to be deemed a trade description applied in the course of a trade or business unless it is or forms part of an advertisement.

Appointment of Director of Consumer Protection and other officers

3.—(1) The Minister may appoint a Director of Consumer Protection, a Deputy Director of Consumer Protection, and such number of Assistant Directors of Consumer Protection and other officers as the Minister may consider necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act.

(2) The powers and duties of the Director under this Act may be exercised and discharged by the Deputy Director or an Assistant Director of Consumer Protection.