A Risk Analysis for Seven Consumer Products Excluded in the Product Safety Certification System in South Korea

Abstract

This study analyzed the risk level of non-managed products excluded from the Product Safety Certification System (PSCS) in South Korea and suggested the need of those products to be managed by PSCS. It focused on seven products including lawn trimmer, sickle, saw (saw blade), luggage carrier, snow chain, exercising ball, and alpine stick, which were found hazardous by the 1st Multi-ministries Product Safety Policy Council in 2017. The risk and need of safety management for each product were analyzed using domestic and foreign standards, accident case analysis, and Delphi technique. We then modified the analysis results based on the opinions of stakeholders such as external experts, consumers and manufacturers and suggested which products should be included in PSCS. The results showed that an exercising ball and an alpine stick should be included in PSCS to manage the potential risks. Concerning an appropriate level of safety management for those products, an exercising ball should be managed by safety verification system while an alpine stick by supplier guarantee system. Besides, further study is needed for a luggage carrier regarding its need of safety management and testing items from a long-term perspective.