By Patrick Avenell

The ACCC has today issued a general reminder to suppliers, specifically smaller operations, of their mandatory reporting requirements. Australian Consumer Law dictates that suppliers must notify the ACCC within learning that a product they supplied may have caused, or may lead to, injury, illness or death.

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"As the majority of these reports have come from large organisations, the ACCC is concerned that small and medium sized enterprises may not yet be fulfilling their mandatory requirements," said ACCC deputy chair Peter Kell.

"It’s important for suppliers to remember that the law makes it clear that a mandatory report is not an admission of liability and an ACCC assessment will only lead to a product recall when it is necessary to protect consumers."

According to Kell, during the first half of calendar 2011, there were 911 mandatory reports and 40 product recalls.