Brussels: The new Product Liability Directive must become national law by 9 December 2026, and it will change who pays when software, artificial intelligence or a connected device causes harm. Directive (EU) 2024/2853 replaces rules dating from 1985, and only a few member states have so far moved on the transposition.

With a little more than two months left, manufacturers, insurers and consumer groups are testing what the text means in practice. The answer is that digital products now sit firmly inside a regime built for steel and chemicals.

How the Product Liability Directive widens the definition

The biggest change is scope. The 1985 regime spoke of movable goods, and courts argued for years about whether an app or an operating system qualified. The new Product Liability Directive settles the point by covering software and digital manufacturing files, such as the design files used for 3D printing.

That means a developer can face strict liability for a defective update, not just a hardware maker. Components and related services that affect how a product works also fall within reach, so a faulty navigation service can create liability for the vehicle maker.

Burden of proof and disclosure of evidence

Technical complexity has long defeated injured consumers. A person cannot easily show that an algorithm was defective when only the company holds the code and the logs. The directive therefore eases the claimant’s burden where excessive difficulties arise, in particular because of technical or scientific complexity.

It also introduces rules on disclosure of evidence. A court can order a defendant to hand over relevant material once the claimant presents facts that make the claim plausible. Companies will need to keep documentation that they can produce without delay, because refusal can trigger presumptions against them.

Longer limits and fewer thresholds

The Product Liability Directive extends the liability period to 25 years for personal injury that appears late, for example after exposure to a hazardous substance. It also removes the minimum threshold for property damage, which used to exclude small claims. The list of compensable harm grows as well.

Not everything tilts toward claimants. The development risk defence survives, although member states may choose during transposition whether to keep it. The Netherlands, which published its bill in April 2025, retains the defence, in line with its earlier approach. Differences between capitals will matter for cross-border sellers.

What manufacturers and insurers should do now

Companies should map which of their products and updates fall inside the new definition. Teams that ship software with physical goods need clear version control, cybersecurity patch records and a way to prove that they met safety requirements at the time of release.

Insurers are reviewing policies that excluded software faults. Underwriters expect more claims tied to connected products, and they will ask for evidence of testing and of post-market monitoring before they renew cover.

What happens next

Watch three things in the coming weeks: how many member states publish final laws before 9 December, whether capitals keep the development risk defence, and how courts apply the disclosure rules to the first claims. The Product Liability Directive applies to products placed on the market after the deadline, so firms still have a short window to prepare.

For consumers, the message is simple. The Product Liability Directive gives injured people a stronger route to compensation when digital products fail, and it asks businesses to treat software quality as a legal duty.