National Consumer Secretariat issues technical notes with new guidelines for Recall Campaigns

In January 2020, the National Consumer Secretariat (“SENACON”) published Technical Notes No. 4/2020 and No. 6/2020, which provide for new guidelines for recall procedures, that is regulated by Ordinance No. 618/2019 (“Recall Ordinance”) from the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and by article 10 of the Brazilian Consumer Defense Code (Federal Law No. 8.078 / 1990 – “CDC”).

Technical Note No. 4/2020 addresses SENACON’s autonomy to determine criteria relating to the disclosure of Media Plans and Risk Warnings. Accordingly, SENACON will be able to indicate the best means of communication for disclosing recall campaigns, taking into account traceability and the number of products affected. Thereafter, SENACON may include or suppress means of communication to disclose the campaign’s Risk Warning, in order to make the recall more efficient and flexible.

The annex of Technical Note No. 4/2020 establishes the parameters to be observed by SENACON when analyzing requests for exempting or including certain means of communication to disclose the Risk Warning, which are:
Traceability – ability to identify the location of the product.

i. Traceability – ability to identify the location of the product.

ii. Risk Warning – regularity of the content of the Risk Warning.

iii. Quantity of products subject to the recall campaign – in case the number of products affected by the recall is low.

iv. Company history – regularity of the documentation presented in the last 5 (five) recall campaigns carried out by the company, if any.

v. Compliance with deadlines applicable to previous recall campaigns.

If the above criteria has been identified, SENACON’s representative will analyze the exemption request or necessity to include other means of communication that may be indicated by the supplier.

In addition, once the possibility of suppressing a mean of communication has been accepted, SENACON and the supplier will establish goals to comply with the recall campaign.

Technical Note No. 6/2020 presents SENACON’s understanding of when the 24-hour deadline will commence for product suppliers to communicate an internal investigation related to the introduction of a harmful or dangerous product in the consumer market.

According to SENACON’s understanding, suppliers must comply with the 24-hour deadline when they detect that a failure in the manufacturing process has affected a series of products or when the possibility that a defective product or service is an isolated case has been ruled out.