Europe

This page deals with consumer protection regimes in Europe, a strong influence on Australia and more broadly on international consumer development law and practice.

It covers -

• introduction
• key directives

    the European Union

In June 2000 the EU adopted a major E-Commerce Directive (here) to ensure that providers/users of 'information society services' across Europe benefit from the principles of free movement of services and freedom of establishment. It extended the 1997 Distance Selling Directive (PDF).

The 2000 Directive embraces B2B and B2C activity, including services that are funded by advertising or sponsorship and those using online electronic transactions, such as interactive online shopping. Sectors covered include online newspapers, databases, financial services, professional services (such as lawyers, doctors and accountants), entertainment services (such as video on demand), direct marketing and internet service providers or content hosting.

The Directive articulates -

• requirements regarding the role of national authorities;
• transparency requirements for web advertising;
• principles relating to contracting online;
• limitations to the liability of Internet intermediaries; and
• requirements regarding disclosure of any codes of conduct, such as for online-dispute settlement, by which the service provider is bound.

The Directive was extended in 2002 by the Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications (PDF), which includes some protection against spam.

     key directives 

The overall EU regime encompasses -

• The 2005 Directive on Unfair Commercial Practices - mean to "contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market and achieve a high level of consumer protection by approximating" the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of the EU Member States on unfair commercial practices harming consumers' economic interests.
• The 2000 E-Commerce Directive - seeks to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market by ensuring free movement of information society services between EU Member States. It harmonises, to the extent necessary for achievement of that objective, certain national provisions on information society services relating to the internal market, establishment of service providers, commercial communications, electronic contracts, the liability of intermediaries, codes of conduct, out-of-court dispute settlements, court actions and cooperation between Member States.
• The 1999 Consumer Sales Directive - aims to harmonise the laws and administrative provisions of EU Member States on certain aspects of the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees in order to ensure a uniform minimum level of consumer protection in the context of the internal market.
• The 1997 Distance Selling Directive - objective is to harmonise the laws and administrative provisions of EU Member States concerning distance contracts between consumers and suppliers.
• The 1995 Data Protection Directive - requires EU Member States to protect the 'fundamental rights and freedoms' of natural persons, and in particular the right to privacy regarding the processing of personal data. Member States "shall neither restrict nor prohibit the free flow of personal data between Member States for reasons connected with the protection these fundamental rights and freedoms".
• The 1993 Directive on Unfair Contract Terms - seeks to harmonise the laws, regulations and administrative provisions of EU Member States relating to unfair terms in contracts concluded between a seller or supplier and a consumer.

   next page (elsewhere)