During a moderated open discussion, 10 relevant concerns that warrant attention were identified: privacy, reliability, complaints, fairness, price, timeliness, convenience, safety, disclosure, and quality. The group exchanged insights on how to take on the considerable challenges of setting standards in all of these service sectors in relation to these specific consumer concerns.
Attendees also heard from COPOLCO's Product Safety Working Group on developing standards to address choking hazards for children.
The Product Safety Working Group is also addressing standards for top-loading washing machines, ride-on toys, and washing detergent pods, which are colorful and pose the risk of small children ingesting them. Additional product safety issues being considered by COPOLCO are accident investigation, safe sleeping conditions, arts and crafts materials, trampoline parks, chemical safety, and table saws. At the annual meeting, it was agreed upon that the following areas would be new candidates for standards development in COPOLCO: instructions for use; sustainable cocoa; e-cigarettes; and 3-D printing.
The COPOLCO delegates had a robust discussion on whether the sharing economy - e.g., ride sharing (vehicles) and shared housing - should be a focus of international standardization. Stakeholders noted that this is a burgeoning area that is in need of stronger consumer protections.
For more information, visit www.iso.org/iso/copolco.