Consumer Policy in the EU

Roaming - guide — 10 May 2012, 16:11 CET

The cost of using mobile phones, smartphones and tablets when travelling within the EU will fall sharply from 1 July this year, under a provisional agreement between MEPs and national governments voted in by Parliament on Thursday 10 May.

EU caps smartphone roaming prices to fight 'rip-offs' — 11 May 2012, 15:47 CET

Europeans will pay less roaming charges when using their smartphones or tablets across EU borders from July 1 under new price caps to end exorbitant bills for consumers.

RAPEX in 2011 - guide — 08 May 2012, 14:03 CET

EU consumers want to be sure that the products - whether produced in the EU or imported from third-countries - are safe. The RAPEX 2011 Report shows that the EU's rapid alert system for non-food dangerous products ("RAPEX") is increasingly effective. Dangerous products are detected earlier and more effectively and are more promptly removed from the EU market. This process involves a chain of actions including upstream efforts to design out risks at source, better risk assessment and close co-operation between EU authorities, notably customs, to identify risks at the points of entry.

Fewer toxic toys and textiles in EU stores — 08 May 2012, 17:27 CET

Europe last year saw its first drop in the number of toxic toys and skin-irritating textiles stacked on its supermarket shelves, more than half of them made in China, the EU said on Tuesday.

Football: 50,000 Euro 2012 tickets unsold in Ukraine — 23 April 2012, 17:17 CET

A total of 50,000 tickets for Euro 2012 remain unsold for matches in Ukraine, UEFA said on Monday, while playing down suggestions that rocketing accommodation prices are to blame.

Eurozone retail sales drop in February — 04 April 2012, 11:47 CET

Eurozone retail sales fell slightly in February, dropping 0.1 per cent from the level in January, European Union figures showed on Wednesday.

Football: Polish watchdog faults Euro 2012 ticket rules — 16 March 2012, 15:52 CET

Poland's consumer protection office on Friday said it had launched legal action against UEFA over rules governing tickets for the looming European football championships in the country.

Europe new car sales down 9.7% in February — 15 March 2012, 11:16 CET

New car sales across Europe fell by 9.7 per cent in February on a 12-month basis, the fifth consecutive monthly slide, says the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association.

Dutch consumption lowest in eurozone: Central Bank — 08 March 2012, 15:50 CET

The Netherlands had the lowest consumption growth in the eurozone over the last decade, owing to a decline in incomes and a weak property market, its central bank said on Thursday.

Eurozone economic confidence rises in February — 28 February 2012, 12:26 CET

Consumer and business confidence in the 17-nation eurozone rose in February, although the key services sector suffered a drop, official data showed on Tuesday.

Europe new car sales down 7.1% in January — 16 February 2012, 10:21 CET

New car sales across Europe fell 7.1 per cent in January compared to the year earlier, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association said Thursday.

Eurozone retail sales slip during key holiday period — 03 February 2012, 12:23 CET

Eurozone retail sales fell in the key run-up to Christmas, dropping 0.4 per cent in December compared with November, the European Union's data agency said on Friday.

Eurozone consumer confidence ends 10-month drop — 30 January 2012, 22:24 CET

Consumer and business confidence in the 17-nation eurozone improved slightly in January, halting a 10-month decline, official data shows.

Data protection reform - guide — 25 January 2012, 15:13 CET

The European Commission has today proposed a comprehensive reform of the EU's 1995 data protection rules to strengthen online privacy rights and boost Europe's digital economy. Technological progress and globalisation have profoundly changed the way our data is collected, accessed and used. In addition, the 27 EU Member States have implemented the 1995 rules differently, resulting in divergences in enforcement. A single law will do away with the current fragmentation and costly administrative burdens, leading to savings for businesses of around €2.3 billion a year. The initiative will help reinforce consumer confidence in online services, providing a much needed boost to growth, jobs and innovation in Europe.

Animal Welfare Strategy 2012-2015 - guide — 19 January 2012, 17:32 CET

The European Commission has adopted a new four-year strategy (2012-2015) that aims to further improve the welfare of animals in the European Union.

Strategy for the Protection and Welfare of Animals 2012-2015 - EC Communication — 19 January 2012, 17:14 CET

The European Commission has adopted a new four-year strategy (2012-2015) that aims to further improve the welfare of animals in the European Union.

Consumer credit sweep — 12 January 2012, 23:16 CET

An "EU sweep" is an action co-ordinated by the European Commission, and carried out simultaneously by the national consumer enforcement authorities in the Member States, Norway and Iceland. In a given week each year, consumer authorities check hundreds of sites in a particular sector in order to see where consumer rights are being compromised or denied. When they find that a website does not comply with EU consumer law, they then contact the operator and ask for corrective action. Those who fail to correct illegal practices can face fines or be ordered to close their websites.

Consumer credit websites - EC investigation - guide — 13 January 2012, 23:10 CET

Were you ever about to sign a contract for a personal loan, credit card, or other consumer credit and discovered that it was all working out more expensive than you had first expected? An EU-wide investigation of websites offering consumer credit took place to check whether consumers are receiving the information to which they are entitled under EU consumer law before signing a consumer credit contract. National enforcement authorities checked more than 500 websites across the 27 Member States plus Norway and Iceland. They flagged 70% (393) of sites for further investigation in relation to the following main problems: the advertising did not include the required standard information; the offers omitted key information that is essential for making a decision; the costs were presented in a misleading way. National enforcement authorities will now contact financial institutions and credit intermediaries about suspected irregularities and ask them to clarify or take corrective action. The sweep operation checked in particular how business is applying the Consumer Credit Directive (recently transposed in Member States), which aims to make it easier for consumers to understand and compare credit offers.

Eurozone retail sales fell 0.8% in November — 06 January 2012, 12:23 CET

Retail sales fell by 0.8 per cent across the 17-nation eurozone in November, slumping after a 0.1 per cent increase in October, official figures showed on Friday.

Fish-friendly laundry and dishwasher detergents - guide — 15 December 2011, 00:01 CET

Washing powders and dishwasher detergents will need to be almost phosphate-free in future, following a vote in the European Parliament on Wednesday. The measures aim to protect aquatic life in waterways and seas around the EU.

Solving consumer disputes out-of-court - guide — 01 December 2011, 17:46 CET

Currently, out-of-court dispute resolution in the EU is possible only for some business sectors or in some areas. To tackle this issue, the European Commission has unveiled a package of legislative proposals to ensure that all EU consumers can solve their problems without going to court, regardless of the kind of product or service that the contractual dispute is about and regardless of where they bought it in the European single market (that is, at home or abroad). For consumers shopping online from another EU country, the Commission wants to create an EU-wide single online platform, which will allow to solve contractual disputes entirely online within 30 days.

Plant health pests and EU funding programmes to deal with them - guide — 16 November 2011, 17:07 CET

The European Union today earmarked 19 million euros to co-finance programmes in seven Member States aiming to combat organisms harmful to plants and to prevent them from spreading further in the Union and thus from having sever consequences on the internal market. During a meeting of the Standing Committee on Plant Health (SCPH), the Member States endorsed two Commission proposals providing the co-financing (EUR 15 and EUR 4 million respectively) of actions already undertaken in the past or planned to be executed next year.

EU move to reduce cigarette ignited fires - guide — 14 November 2011, 23:54 CET

Cigarettes left unattended are one of the leading causes of fatal fires in Europe. Evidence shows that the number of fatalities can be reduced by over 40% with the introduction of 'Reduced Ignition Propensity' (RIP) cigarettes. This means cigarettes which self extinguish when left unattended and which are thus less likely to cause fire. This safety measure is already in place in some countries globally (US, Canada, Australia), and, in the EU, in Finland since April 2010. As from 17th November 2011, once the new safety standards are published in the EU Official Journal all cigarettes sold in Europe will have to comply with these measures. It will be the role of the national authorities to enforce this new fire safety measure.

Database on Food Additives — 14 November 2011, 14:08 CET

This database can serve as a tool to inform about the food additives approved for use in food in the EU and their conditions of use. It is based on the Union list of food. This list is in Annex II of Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008. The Union list was established after the transfer of the food additives permitted for use in foods under Directives 94/35/EC, 94/36/EC and 95/2/EC, in a new food categorisation system. Some additives and uses which are now longer needed are not entered in Annex II.

Food Additives - guide — 14 November 2011, 14:15 CET

The use of additives in food will soon become safer and more transparent thanks to two pieces of legislation adopted by the European Commission.