Regulations on compensation for damage caused by defective products and goods in Vietnam as of July 1, 2024

Regulations on compensation for damage caused by defective products and goods in Vietnam as of July 1, 2024 (Internet image)

Regarding this matter, LawNet would like to answer as follows:

1. What are defective products and goods?

“defective product or good” means a product or good which fails to ensure safety of consumers and which is likely cause damage to their lives, health or property but for which the defect was yet to be found at the time such product or good was supplied to consumers despite the fact that such product or good was manufactured in accordance with the standard or technical regulation in force. Defective products or goods include:

- Mass-produced products or goods containing a defect originated from a technical design;

- Singly produced products or goods containing a defect originated from the process of their manufacturing, processing, transport, storage and use;

- Products and goods which have the potential to threaten safety during their use but fail to have no adequate instructions or warnings for consumers.

(Clause 4, Article 3 of the Law on on Protection of Consumers’ Rights 2023)

2. Regulations on compensation for damage caused by defective products and goods in Vietnam as of July 1, 2024

Specifically, Article 34 of the Law on on Protection of Consumers’ Rights 2023 stipulates compensation for damage caused by defective products and goods in Vietnam as of July 1, 2024 as follows:

(1) Traders shall be liable to provide compensation in the event that their defective products and goods cause damage to the life, health and property of consumers even if they were unaware of or not at fault for the defects, except for the case specified in Article 35 of the Law on on Protection of Consumers’ Rights 2023.

(2) Traders that are liable to provide compensation specified in clause (1) include:

(i) Manufacturers of products and goods;

(ii) Importers of products and goods;

(iii) Organizations or individuals that attach trade names to their products and goods or use other trademarks or trade indications so that they are identified as manufacturers or importers of products and goods;

(iv) Organizations and individuals performing commercial intermediary activities for products and goods;

(v) Organizations and individuals that directly supply products and goods to consumers;

(vi) Other organizations and individuals that are responsible for products and goods in accordance with other relevant regulations of law.

Note: 

- If the traders specified in (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) and (vi) are not identifiable, the traders specified in (v) shall provide compensation for consumers, unless otherwise prescribed by law.

- If multiple traders specified in (ii) cause damage, they must take joint responsibility for providing compensation for consumers.

- The provision of compensation shall comply with regulations of civil law and other relevant regulations of law.

3. What are the cases of exemption from liability for damage caused by defective products and goods in Vietnam?

A trader specified in Section 2 shall be exempt from liability for damage in the following cases:

- They prove that the state of scientific or technical knowledge at the time the product or good caused damage could not detect;

- They have implemented all measures mentioned in Articles 32 and 33 of the Law on on Protection of Consumers’ Rights 2023 and consumers receive adequate information but deliberately use the defective product or good causing the damage;

- Other cases under regulations of civil law and other relevant regulations of law.

(Article 35 of the Law on on Protection of Consumers’ Rights 2023)

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