Tag: Consumer Rights Directive

Consumers and businesses alike should reap the benefits of new consumer rights legislation in Europe, with years of negotiations set to conclude with the approval by the European Parliament on Thursday (23 June) of the EU's Consumer Rights Directive.  

The EU's new Consumer Rights Directive is designed to drag consumer rights legislation into the 21^st Century by creating legal certainty for businesses and better protecting online shoppers in particular. But EU policymakers are currently at loggerheads over the scope of the draft law. 

An updated version of the EU's Consumer Rights Directive was approved by the European Parliament's internal market committee yesterday (1 February). But socialist MEPs rejected the text and accused their centre-right colleagues of "selling off" the rights of European consumers, suggesting that further battles lie ahead before the legislation becomes law.  

Brussels lacks a "clear vision or strategy" on consumer rights legislation, Ursula Pachl, deputy director-general of European consumer group BEUC, told EurActiv in an interview. 

Ministers meeting at an EU Competitiveness Council last week backed compromise proposals tabled by the Belgian EU Presidency aimed at drawing up "common consumer rights" across the European Union and bringing together existing EU legislation into a single Consumer Rights Directive.

The European Parliament's internal market and consumer protection committee debated a report yesterday (3 June) which completely overhauls the European Commission's original proposal for a directive on consumer rights.