User instructions

The vendor must provide the operating, maintenance and care instructions required for using the product. The instructions must be easily available in both Finnish and Swedish, and they must contain indications for safe use of the product. If the instructions are inadequate or missing, the product has a defect for which the vendor is liable, and it is the vendor’s responsibility to rectify the situation. 

A product must come with the operating, maintenance and care instructions needed for its normal use. The vendor is responsible for making sure that the buyer gets the user instructions when the product is handed over. The product has a defect if the instructions needed for its installation, assembly, use, care or storage are not provided with it.

Requirements for user instructions

The user instructions must be easily available:

• The consumer cannot be told to contact the importer or manufacturer about the user instructions, and obtaining the instructions must not result in additional costs.
• If the instructions are only available in an electronic form on a website the vendor must, before concluding the sale, ensure that the buyer can access the instructions. If the consumer does not have Internet access, the vendor must provide the instructions in some other form, such as a printed version.
• If the instructions are provided in an electronic form inside the appliance, they must be clear and easy to use, and the consumer must be informed of how to find them.

The user instructions must be provided in Finnish and Swedish:

• No fee may be charged for providing instructions in Finnish or Swedish.
• An online store must also provide user instructions in Finnish and Swedish if its website is in Finnish and the goods are marketed to Finnish consumers.
• The vendor cannot avoid the obligation to provide instructions by telling consumers in marketing communication that the product only has instructions in English.
• English instructions can only be considered sufficient if the product is intended for a very limited set of customers and its use requires specific expertise.
• An exception to the language requirements is instructions that can be issued using widely known symbols, including warning symbols and care labels in clothing.

The instructions for use must include indications concerning the safe use of the product:

• The instructions must contain any information necessary for preventing or avoiding a hazard associated with the product or service, including operating instructions and warnings.
• The information should be provided in a clear and understandable manner.
  Read more about product labels on the website of the Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency: https://tukes.fi/koti-ja-vapaa-aika/tuotteen-merkinnat.

Inadequate or missing instructions for use

The vendor is obliged to provide the consumer with the instructions required for using the product. If the instructions are incomplete or missing, the product has a defect for which the vendor is liable, and the seller is responsible for rectifying the situation.