We are looking for (a) contractor(s) to produce a report about product safety in the online marketplace. This report will support of TACD members’ efforts to protect consumers in Europe and the United States from unsafe products sold online.

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Context

Online marketplaces have grown into a primary retail option for consumers in the EU, U.S., and UK. However, previous research has demonstrated that the products often fail to meet applicable safety standards, labelling requirements, or other regulatory compliance obligations. This creates risks for consumers and undermines the efforts of legitimate businesses and regulators alike. TACD member organisations conduct highly valuable work in monitoring the safety of these online marketplaces, and it is the task of the researcher to gather information from the members.

Objective of the research

This report will serve as a follow up and an update to TACD’s previous report, published in July 2025. The report will:

• Assess the scale of unsafe or noncompliant products available through third country traders/third-party sellers on major online marketplaces in the EU, U.S., and UK, including the categories of products most affected and the harms they pose to consumers.
• Evaluate the current regulatory frameworks governing marketplace responsibility and liability of non-compliant and unsafe products and seller compliance in the EU, U.S., and UK. Identify gaps and enforcement challenges that allow noncompliant products to persist on these platforms. Provide an overview of the enforcement activities related to product safety and conducted in the US (federal and state level), the UK and the EU (EU and member states level).
• Describe the existing market surveillance and enforcement cooperation between the different jurisdictions.

Target audience: consumer advocates, EU and US policymakers, and regulators. Hence, the report should be written in plain, accessible English. It should be no more than 30 pages of A4 (or 32 pages US legal) in length, excluding any annexes or bibliography.

About TACD

The Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD) is a long-established forum of 75+ EU, U.S, and UK consumer organisations, which develops joint consumer policy recommendations to the US government and European Union to promote the consumer interest in EU and U.S. policy making.