ICPHSO keynote remarks from Japan Nov 2017

1. TAKASHI WADA (Mr.)
Director of Product Safety Division
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan
Remarks
2017 ICPHSO International Symposium
Tokyo
【Opening Plenary Session # 1: 9:45am – 10:30am】
November 14, 2017

2. Current issues and challenges on Product Safety
1
Expansion of
Internet Shopping
（Online product safety)
Supply Chain Bottlenecks
(Efficiency of product safety)
Proliferating IoT Products &
Mobile Technology
(Impact of IoT on product safety)
Appropriate Technology use by
Elderly and Children
(Adapting product safety to meet
Age-based considerations)

3. 2
Organization Structure on Product Safety Policy in Japan
●Focus on post-market measures rather than pre-market regulation.
●Consumer Affairs Agency: Coordinates consumer protection policy
across ministries;
-Established by Consumer Protection Basic Law (2009)
●Ministries: Guidance and promotion of respective industry
ex.) METI（Industrial and Consumer products, Services）
MAFF (Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery products)
MLIT (Automobile, Housing, etc. ), other ministries and agencies
Our basic policy for implementing product safety measures
【pre-market regulation】
◆encouraging self-declaration of
conformity with regulations
by manufactures or importers
【post-market measures】
・on-site inspections
・collecting reports from the business operators
・taking measures for implementing product recalls
and withdrawal, etc.

4. 3
The Four Product Safety Acts
METI is managing the Four Acts legislating product safety standards and certification
systems for consumer products.
<Number of specified items>
●Consumer Product Safety Act
(10 items)
4 items 6 items
●Electrical Appliances and Materials Safety Act
(457 items)
116 items 341 items
● Gas Business Act (8 items)
4 items 4 items
● Act on the Securing of Safety and the
Optimization of Transaction of Liquefied
Petroleum Gas (16 items)
7 items 9 items
Example: Daily-life product with PS mark

5. 13
Serious Product Accident Reporting and Disclosure System
Supplier has to report the accident to Government within ten days
The name & type of the product, a detailed account of the accident, the quantity of the products etc.
Publication of accidents by the Government (CAA)
CAA releases accident outlines twice a week for general public and industries concerned.
Disclosure of accident
information (800 cases)
◆ METI manages and endorses the counter measures
of suppliers based on the investigation results
◆ NITE: Investigates the Cause of Accident
(National Institute of Technology and Evaluation)
* Serious Product Accident*
(a) death, (b) serious/fatal injury or disease for which
treatment requires no less than 30 days, (c) fire,
(d) carbon monoxide poisoning,
(e) physical disability/ after affects of injury
【Consumer Product Safety Act, Article 35】
【Consumer Product Safety Act, Article 36】
Serious product accidents

6. 17
Trends of Serious Product Accidents
 The total number of reports is decreasing over the last 9 years.
0
300
600
900
1200
1500
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Number of reports
1190 1172
Others
Electrical
appliance
Oil-combustive
1412
11411169
1077
941
892 885 802（▼83）

7. 6
Accidents involving elderly people
 A total of 708 serious product accidents occurred in the elderly demographic (65
years old and over) in the past five years.
 The proportion of "death" caused by accidents increased for the elderly generation,
the percentage of which rises with age; those over 80 are most at risk.
Serious product accidents for elderly people
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
H24年度 H25年度 H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
人的被害
無し
軽傷
重傷
死亡
179
145 150
137
97
FY2012 2013 2014 2015 FY2016
No
injury
Slight
injury
Serious
injury
Death
7%
1%
6%
12%
20%
78%
33%
31% 22%
21%
6%
7% 5% 7%
6%
9%
58% 58% 59%
53%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
10歳未満 10-50代 60歳代 70歳代 80歳以上
Damage status by age

8. 7
 Mostly caused by healthcare equipment, oil stoves, and stepladders.
 For welfare equipment, electric care beds and electric wheelchairs caused the
most accidents.
Product Accidents Caused
by welfare equipment
（including Non-Serious Accidents)
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
H24年度 H25年度 H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
その他
車いす
歩行者・歩行器
手すり
電動車いす
介護ベッド関連
Oil stove
15%
Ladder
&Stepladder
8%
Electric care
beds
7%
Electric stove
6%
Electric
wheelchairs
6%
Gas cooker
5%
Chair
3%
Walking aid
3%
Snow remover
3%
shoes
3%
Exercise tool
2%
Electric blanket
2%
Electric Assist
Bicycle 2%
Hot-water
washing toilet
seats 2%
Bicycle 2%
Refrigerator
2%
Others 30%
（出典：ＮＩＴＥ）
Death and serious injury for Elderly
(Age 65 and over) （FY2012 -FY 2016）
Accidents involving elderly people
Others
Wheelchairs
Walking aid
Handrail
e-Wheelchairs
Care beds

9. 8
Accidents involving children (under 10 years)
Water
saver
11 cases
Stroller 7
cases
Bicycle 7
cases
Chair 5
cases
Others 43
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
H24年度 H25年度 H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
人的被害無し
軽傷
重傷
死亡
19
17
12
25
8
Effects of serious accidents for
children over the past 5 years
FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016
Number of cases of death / serious injury
child accident by product (FY2013-2016)
No injury
Slight injury
Serious injury
Death
A measure for Child Product Safety
：“Kids Design“ Award

10. 9
Issues Related to Long-term-use Products
◆ In Japan, some products are used for many years, and are thus prone to age-related
accident.
◆ Inspection and labeling are effective means to ensuring the safety of aged products.
【Labeling System】
- Name of the specified manufacturer
- Date of Production
- Manufacturer’s number
- Design standard use period
- Inspection period, recommended frequency of inspections
- Warning Notice
- Contact information, etc.
【Inspection System】
◇ Suppliers must
-Notify the owner of products
-Provide inspection/repair at the request of the owner
Accidents by old fans

11. 10
Number of recalls
FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016
Triggered by serious accident 17 17 24 17 18
Triggered by non-serious accident 74 99 91 79 73
Total (cases) 91 116 115 96 91
Number of accidents caused by
products not compatible with recall
147 145
113
141
125
144 142
122
100
89
12%
10%
10%
12%
11%
13%
15% 14%
11%
11%
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
H19年度 H20年度 H21年度 H22年度 H23年度 H24年度 H25年度 H26年度 H27年度 H28年度FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 FY2011 FY2012 FY2013 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

12. Enhancing effectiveness of recalls with IoT technology
Registration of users
②Registration
of users
③Information
of recall
Remote control
Recall information notice system
Contact the call centre Display the repair dayPush the button
This product is recalled.
Please push the button.
This product is recalled.
TEL XX-XXXXX
Serial number XXXXXX
http:// XX-XXXX-XXXX
Notice
The scheduled date is
dd/mm/yy/

13. 12
Product Safety (PS) Awards
 METI launched the Product Safety Awards program in FY 2007 with the aim of
encouraging private enterprises to make a greater commitment for product safety and
safety culture. The award winners are expected to be the PS mentors for the industry.
 In FY 2017, METI has been rolling out its award promotion campaign for 2017’s
theme "product safety in a straightforward manner”.
FY 2017 winners
○ Large Manufacturer and Importer Category
METI Minister’s Awards：YKK AP Inc.
DG for Industrial Safety Policy’s Award：Hitachi Appliances, Inc.
DG for Industrial Safety Policy’s Award：Yamamoto Kogaku Co.,Ltd
Excellence Award (Committee Award): Laundry System & Vacuum Cleaner Business Division
of Appliances Company, Panasonic Corp.
Excellence Award (Committee Award): FUJISASH CO.,LTD.
Excellence Award (Committee Award): WACOAL HOLDINGS CORP.
○Large Retailer Category
No winner
○Small & Medium Manufacturer ＆ Importer Category
METI Minister’s Awards：Accuphase Laboratory, Inc.
DG for Industrial Safety Policy’s Award：Yamamoto Kogaku Co.,Ltd
○Small & Medium Retailer Category
DG for Industrial Safety Policy’s Award：Daiichi-Denkasha Co.,Ltd.
DG for Industrial Safety Policy’s Award：Nara-Nikka Service Co.,Ltd.
○Special Awards
“Productive Consumer Affairs Policies” Net Chiba
Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.

14. 13
Safety promotion for consumers (government press & NITE’s press)
Year 2016
Jun. Audio information (CD); Attention to fire for air-
conditioners and electric funs
Jul. Internet TV; Danger lurking in summer leisure products!
Aug. Radio program; Prevent housing equipment accidents
for children and the elderly
Sep. Audio information (CD); Prevent housing equipment
accidents for children and the elderly
Sep. Cellphone Ad; Attention to product accident for Elderly
Nov. Newspaper Ad; Product Safety Inspection Month
Nov. Audio information (CD); Attention to product accidents in winter
Dec. Radio program and Internet Ad; Prevent the fire by
house cleaning/Attention to fire caused by electric stove
Dec. Cabinet office’s SNS; Attention to usage of stove
Year 2017
Jan. Cellphone Ad & Audio information (CD); Attention to low
temperature burns due to hot-water bottles
Jan. Internet Ad; Attention to product accidents in winter
Jan. TV & Radio programs and Audio information (CD);
Inspection system for Long-term-use Product Safety
Feb. TV program;Inspection for Long-term-use Product Safety
Feb. Internet Ad; Prevention of product accidents for aged deterioration
Mar. Internet Ad; Precautions when purchasing electrical products
Mar. Radio program, Internet Ad & Audio information (CD);
How to remove the stove at the end of season
By Government Official Press
Year 2016
April Prevention of accidents for smartphones & its peripheral equipment
May Prevention of accidents for air purifiers and dehumidifiers
June Prevention of fire accidents for air conditioner & electric fan
July Prevention of accidents for camping goods products such as
Cassette hall, etc.
Aug. Prevention of falls accidents for ladders and stepladders
Sep. Prevention of elderly people accidents for "electric nursing care
beds", "electric wheelchairs" and "hot-water washing toilet seats"
Oct. Prevention of fire accidents for long-term use of the products such
as oil burning bath heater and combination bath water & potable
gas water heater, etc.
Nov. Prevention of fire accidents for stoves
Dec. Prevention of fire accidents for lighting equipment
Year 2017
Jan. Prevention of fire accidents for wiring accessories, etc.
Feb. Prevention of unexpected accidents of infants at home
Mar. Prevention of bicycle accidents
By NITE’S Monthly Press
 In FY2016, METI and NITE released product safety information for consumers
by HP’s and 25 Government’s Press and NITE’S Press.

15. 14
Silent Change Issue
Example of change of flame retardant
Short-circuited, the melted portion
◆The insulated part of the AC adapter deteriorated,
resulting in a short circuit.
Example of changing design of shoes
Regular
Accident
◆Shoe sole made of vinyl chloride resin,
with “silent change”
＜ Slippery＞
◆Rubber soles, original spec.
＜Non-Slippery＞
Silent change: suppliers change specs of
parts or raw materials without notice to the
manufacturers, which can cause unnoticed
deterioration of product quality.
*difficult to know the difference from appearance

16. 15
Accidents of appliances using lithium-ion batteries
in Japan
◆Production (pieces): 1,240 Million (2016), 980 Million (2015)
◆National Population: 126,720 Thousand (2017/10)
Number of Accidents of Appliances with lithium-ion batteries
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
H19年度 H20年度 H21年度 H22年度 H23年度 H24年度 H25年度 H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
Numberofreports
その他
電動リール
充電式照明器具
電動アシスト自転車
ラジコン、模型
携帯電話（スマホ）
ポータブルDVDプレイヤー
モバイルバッテリー
携帯電話
携帯型音楽プレイヤー
ノートパソコン
FY2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 FY2016
Others
Electric reel
Recharge-light-equip.
E-assisted bicycle
Radio-control model
Smartphone
DVD player
Mobile battery
Mobile-phone
Music player
Laptop PC
Investigation of the cause of accidents（FY 2012- FY 2016, including Non-serious accidents）
product origin
misuse
/carelessness
Unknown
cause
investigating 計
58 2 18 25 103
source：ＮＩＴＥ
appx１：Excluding clear outside fire
appx2：FY2016 counts until Dec 31

17. 16
Product Safety over the Internet
 METI established a study group consisting of experts & stakeholders,
including internet mall operating companies (Platforms) in 2017.
 The study group held four meeting between February and August of 2017 to
discuss ideal approaches to establishing the policy systems and challenges:
countermeasures such as market surveillance, cooperation between METI ＆
Platforms and consumers’ assessment for Safe products in online shopping.
 The group has summarized and compiled the result of discussion into a
report this August.
(Background: current situation)
 In recent years, while borderless e-commerce has increased dramatically, the Product
Safety Acts and traditional system have not adapted fully to the new and changing
environment. For example, it is currently difficult to respond to illegal products and
business operators.
【Members of the Study group】
・Representatives from government, academia, and the private sector, including
attorneys and stakeholders in the fields of online trade and consumer affairs.

18. 17
Violation cases found in Internet shopping
 As the trading volume of internet shopping expands, various violation cases
are increasing
Number of violations on Internet/Real shop
Number of violations on Internet sales
against Product Safety Acts
FY2014 FY2015 FY2016
Mall 45 38 120
own site 13 10 22
Number of Illegal products selling in Mall/ own site
by Internet（number of cases）
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
消安法
液石法
ガス事法
電安法
58
142
48
195 222 210
58
48
142
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
H26年度 H27年度 H28年度
ネット販売
店頭販売
Online
Real shop
■Consumer Safety Act
■LPG Safety Act
■Gas Safety Act
■Electrical Appliance Safety Act
FY2014 FY2015 FY2016 FY2014 FY2015 FY2016

19. 18
Violation cases found in Internet shopping
■Number of violations on Internet sales (from January to December in 2016)：Total 142 cases
Electrical Appliances Safety Act(Denan): 115 cases(mall:101 cases and own site:10 cases)
Gas Business Act: 1 cases(own site: 1 case)
LPG Safety Act: 10 cases(mall:5 cases and own site:1 case)
Consumer Product Safety Act: 16 cases (mall: 15 cases and own site: 1 case）
■ Contents of violation (Act for E.-Appliance)
*including overlap
・Conformity (Tech. Standard) 78 cases
・Labeling 24 cases
・Notification of Business 25 cases
■ Violation by Product
・AC adaptor 25 cases ・Cartridge gas stove 5 cases
・Laser pointer 16 cases ・Fluorescent lamp 4 cases
・Lithium-ion battery 5 case
・Electric heating cabinet 4 cases
・Outdoor-type gas stove 3 cases
■ Example of violation
●AC adaptor
Products, insufficient insulation distance between different poles on a printed circuit board
etc., being dangerous for ignition or electric shock.
Products that conduct and radiate noise through the power cord, etc. exceed the regulated
capacity and then may affect the function of other equipment.
●Laser Pointer
Products with over 500 times the regulated capacity of output.

20. 19
Cases where sales operators (tenants) sell products
through internet mall operators (platforms)
 In cases where internet mall operators (platform
providers) provide an internet shop for sellers, legal
responsibility including product safety regulation
falls to the sellers. Consumers and even the safety
regulation authority need to directly communicate
with the sellers (tenants) regarding any safety
concerns and conformance issues.
 From the viewpoint of a sound business
environment on the internet, it is beneficial for
consumers, sellers, internet mall operators and
METI to cooperate to exclude illegal or suspicious
products from the market.
Internet
Mall Site
Business
operation
contract
Sales Agreement
User policy
Consumers
Sellers
（Domestic
/Overseas)

21. Cooperation framework
between METI and major e-Commerce & Internet Auction Platforms
・Dissemination of
information on product
safety regulations to raise
user awareness of such
regulations.
・Assistance of platforms
in METI’s investigations to
help take measures
against platform users in
breach of safety
regulations.
・Identification of contact
points helps information
sharing between METI and
the platforms, as well as
regular liaison meetings.
Yahoo Japan Corporation
Rakuten, Inc.
Amazon.co.jp, etc.
19

22. Future cooperation with internet mall providers
 Regarding products that violate the Product Safety Acts, we plan to collect information
intensively from mall operators, sellers and consumers, and share it with mall companies
(platform providers).
2121
Sellers
（Domestic／Overseas)
Consumers
・Feeding back the aggregated information related
to violations to mall companies.
・Market Surveillance; Purchasing samples if necessary.
・Cross-cutting campaign for the measures between mall companies
Providing
information
Mall company Ａ Mall company B Mall company Ｃ Mall company D
…
Providing
information
inquiry inquiry inquiry inquiry
Regular Liaison Meeting
4 times/year

23. 22
Ideas on cooperation with foreign Product Safety Authorities
Overseas
sellers
Domestic
Consumers
<Legal issues of Online Product Safety>
● Product Safety Acts may apply to
oversea sellers, shipping products to
Japan, but the issue is how.
<Cooperation with Foreign Counterparts>
● It is important to facilitate cooperation
with the competent foreign Authorities to
exchange information and technical
support to eliminate illegal goods in
internet shopping.
Domestic
Manufactures
Overseas
Manufacturers
Foreign Regulators
Japan
METI
cooperation
Shipping
Shipping

24. 23
Illegal Laser Pointer Case (sold overseas for Japan)
【Excerpt from A company's profile】
A Company：
“establishes an internet shopping site for
wholesale and retail, and aiming to sell laser
pointers into Japan by directly shipping from
the B country Headquarter Office.”
… We are currently selling high power laser
pointers that are not sold in Japan at
overwhelming low prices."

25. 24
Strengthening International Cooperation on Product
Safety
１）Bilateral Cooperation (based on the Cooperative Agreements, including
MOU and Guideline)
・CPSC (USA) in Nov. 2006
・AQSIQ (China) in Apr. 2007 and EU, etc.
２）Multilateral Cooperation
・OECD meetings and ICPHSO symposium, etc.
３）Information Exchange and Administrative Cooperation
・Enhancing information-sharing for Product Accident ＆ Recalls reports
・Promotion of harmonizing conformity assessment / standardization, etc.

26. 25
Technical Cooperation on Product Safety (South-East Asia)
●Establishing contacts with Southeast Asian countries
●New cooperation with Thailand.
-The first Product Safety seminar was held in Bangkok, Thailand, this August.
Exchanging information & views on legal systems on Consumer and Product Safety of both countries.
-Training in Japan (Dec.2017) and second seminar in Thailand (first quarter of 2018)
Domestic
made
Foreign
made
unknown Total
China K o r e a
T h a i l
a n d
C h i n e s e
T a i p e i
Others
Gas equip.
72
(82%)
16
(18%)
6
(7%)
7
(8%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%)
3
(3%)
3
(0%)
88
Oil equip.
75
(95%)
4
(5%)
4
(5%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%) 79
Electrical
Appliances
216
(40%)
316
59%)
256
(48%)
11
(2%)
19
(3%)
4
(1%)
26
(5%)
5
(1%)
537
O t h e r s
36
(37%)
62
(63%)
53
(54%)
0
(0%)
0
(0%)
3
(3%)
6
(6%)
0
(0%)
98
Total
399
(50%)
398
(50%)
319
(40%)
18
(2%)
19
(2%)
7
(1%)
35
(4%)
5
(1%)
802
Number of serious product accidents
accepted by country of origin in FY 2016
item case
Air-conditioner 9
Washing machine 4
Microwave 2
Refrigerator 1
Air purifier (with
humidification function)
1
Dishwasher-dryer 1
Extension cord 1
Total 19
Number of Accidents
accepted

27. 26
Thank you!
【Contact】
Takashi Wada
Director of Product Safety Division,
Industrial and Product Safety Group
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, METI
Government of Japan
Office Tel#: (+81) 3-3501-4707
E-mail: wada-takashi<atmark>meti.go.jp
URL: http://www.meti.go.jp/english/policy/economy/consumer/index.html