EC plans new cross-border rules on internet shopping
Thursday, 8 February 2007
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Plans for a far-reaching shake-up of consumer rights for internet shoppers will be outlined today as part of moves to give a drastic boost to cross-border trade in Europe.
The measures are designed to help expand opportunities for businesses to export across European frontiers by giving consumers more reassurance through a set of rights that apply across all 27 European countries.
Only 6 per cent of Europeans currently shop online across borders and seven out of 10 consumers believe it is harder to resolve problems when buying from abroad, according to the European Commission.
It wants to update laws on how to return products with common rules on the costs of doing so. Pan-European laws would also be put forward on remedies and on "cooling off" periods after purchases.
Meglena Kuneva, the new European Commissioner for Consumer Affairs, said: "Consumers are not getting a fair deal online and complex rules are holding back the next generation of bright business ideas. We must find new solutions to new challenges.
"We know that many more consumers are ready to buy online across borders than actually do so. This is such a wide margin that, if we fill half this gap, this will bring much more growth and jobs for SMEs."
Almost one-third of Europeans are buying electronically but the vast majority of that e-commerce is taking place within national borders. Officials also argue that the retail trade has not kept pace with dramatic developments prompted by the internet revolution. For example, while a consumer buying a CD from a shop enjoys a level of protection, that does not apply to an internet download.
Today's document argues: "Different rules resulting from minimum harmonisation may have a negative impact on the internal market. One reason for consumers being reluctant to make cross-border purchases is that consumers cannot be sure that the level of protection that they enjoy at home will apply when they buy cross-border."
There are particular wide differences among EU nations over cooling-off periods and for the cost of returning goods.
