Liability When the Manufacturer Is Outside the EU

EU Directive-level explanationUpdated 16 October 2026By ProductLiability.help editorial desk

Manufacturer location changes the actor inquiry

Where a product or component manufacturer is established outside the Union, Directive (EU) 2024/2853 identifies specified additional actors under Article 8(1)(c). The provision includes the importer and the manufacturer's authorised representative, without prejudice to the manufacturer's own potential liability. A qualifying fulfilment service provider becomes relevant where there is no importer established within the Union or authorised representative.

These routes should not be presented as a simple queue in which a person must first pursue the manufacturer, then an importer, then a representative. The Directive states particular actor conditions. The additional absence condition applies to the fulfilment fallback. Liability still depends on the defective-product framework, so the manufacturer's location is the start of this part of the investigation rather than a substitute for defect, damage and causation.

Identify whose location matters

A foreign brand, overseas factory or international shipping address does not necessarily identify the legal manufacturer. Article 4 includes production, development, commissioned design or manufacture, own-brand presentation and production for own use. A company established in the Union might arrange manufacture abroad, while an overseas manufacturer might use a Union sales company with a different role.

Build the economic operator map using full legal identities and product-specific records. Keep the finished product manufacturer separate from the manufacturer of an allegedly defective component. Article 8(1)(c) refers to manufacturers of products or components, and the relevant chain may differ for each. A single global group name can conceal several legal relationships; record the evidence for the actual entity and its establishment rather than assuming every affiliate shares the same role.

Importer and representative routes

An importer under Article 4 is a natural or legal person placing a product from a third country on the Union market. Do not add an unstated establishment requirement to that definition. The Article 8 fulfilment fallback, however, specifically refers to the absence of an importer established within the Union. Keeping the definition and the fallback wording distinct avoids an inaccurate role map.

An authorised representative must be established within the Union and hold a written manufacturer mandate for specified tasks. Identify the represented manufacturer, covered product and relevant appointment period. The authorised representative explanation distinguishes that appointment from a generic contact address. Importing and representation are separate activities, even where one company performs both. Preserve the documents for each rather than relying on a single description supplied by the business.

Fulfilment is conditional

A fulfilment service provider offers at least two defined commercial services from warehousing, packaging, addressing and dispatching, without owning the product, subject to exclusions for specified postal, parcel delivery and other postal or freight transport services. A logistics company does not enter the route merely because a package passed through its premises.

For Article 8(1)(c)(iii), examine the outside-EU manufacturer and the absence of a Union-established importer or authorised representative. Not knowing an importer is different from establishing that none exists. Keep the search evidence and the source of each uncertain relationship. If the business actually owned the product or placed it on the market, another role may require investigation. The analysis should follow the activities for the affected product rather than choose whichever label appears in the website footer.

Distributor and platform identification

Where a relevant Union-established Article 8(1) operator cannot be identified, Article 8(3) provides a conditional distributor mechanism. The injured person must request identification of such an operator or the distributor's own supplying distributor, and the distributor must fail to identify either within one month of receipt. Preserve the request, receipt and response. A manufacturer abroad does not alone satisfy all those conditions.

Article 8(4) applies that mechanism to certain platforms that are not economic operators, subject to the DSA Article 6(3) transaction-presentation conditions. Merely hosting a listing does not create blanket platform liability. Platform identity, trader identity and the specific buying journey require evidence. A business selling its own product through an online interface should also be checked for direct manufacturer or importer roles instead of being assessed only under the special platform route.

Technical and legal scope remain separate

Map the alleged defect and covered harm alongside the actor chain. A product from outside the Union is not inherently defective, and the location of a manufacturer is not evidence that its product caused an incident. Technical inspection, configuration records and chronology may be needed to distinguish manufacturing, component, integration, maintenance and later modification explanations.

Article 11 exemptions, Article 12 multiple-operator rules and national implementing procedure can affect the assessment. Article 15 prevents contractual exclusion or limitation of Directive liability in relation to the injured person, while business-to-business recourse remains a separate matter. A distribution agreement may help explain responsibilities but should not be treated as the complete answer to statutory liability or to whether an overseas company can be pursued in a particular court.

Dates and a practical chain

The corrected Directive scope covers products placed on the market or put into service after 8 December 2026. The 9 December 2026 national transposition deadline is distinct. Record the relevant product dates and examine national implementing law, jurisdiction and procedure. A recent accident or discovery of an EU contact does not automatically bring an older product under the new regime.

Consider a non-EU producer supplying a connected device through a commercial chain involving an importer, an appointed representative and a warehouse. Preserve the legal identities and actual activities of each. The warehouse should not be selected as the fallback merely because it is easiest to contact, and the manufacturer should not disappear from the map because it is overseas. A complete file explains each potential route and the unresolved facts without assuming that every participating business is liable.

Records that help the review

Use the following as a practical starting point. Select and preserve records appropriate to the product, incident and applicable procedure.

Manufacturer legal identity and establishment
Product and component commercial supply chains
Importer activities and representative mandate
Evidence supporting any claimed absence and fulfilment role

Independent educational information at EU Directive level. National implementing law and procedure require separate review.

Primary sources and legal scope

This page explains the EU Directive framework. Check national implementing law, the corrected temporal scope and relevant procedure before applying it to a case.

Source register: corrected scope verified 16 October 2026. Article references identify the legal basis. No qualified legal review or national implementation status is claimed.