Book Description

A review of the existing body of EU consumer law (known as the consumer acquis) culminated in the European Commission's publication of a draft Directive on consumer rights, proposing to replace four of the existing Directives making up the consumer acquis. The draft Directive's aim is to simplify the existing regulatory framework and provide for a real business-to-consumer internal market, balancing a high level of consumer protection with the competitiveness of enterprises. The Committee recommends that the Government withholds agreement from the proposal as drafted. It are unconvinced that it will deliver the desired boost in trade across borders and it may reduce the overall level of protection currently afforded to consumers. Further progress on the Directive should await a more complete impact assessment, addressing issues such as the lack of concrete statistics underpinning this proposal and the exclusion of digital goods and pure services from its scope. The Committee agrees that there is a need to update the existing Directives, not least due to inconsistencies between them over key definitions and the fragmentation of the business-to-consumer internal market that has resulted from Member States being able to introduce provisions that go beyond the minimum set down in the Directives. The Commission's solution is to apply the principle of "full harmonisation", but the Committee would prefer to see a more targeted use of this principle, harmonising certain aspects but allowing Member States room for manoeuvre in other areas.