EU: Majority support for Directive

The 23 April Consumer Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg under the chairmanship of Nigel Griffiths, UK secretary of state for consumer affairs, reached agreement on a Common Position on the sale and guarantee of consumer goods. The Directive – which aims at ensuring that EU consumers have a uniform degree of protection when faulty goods are purchased – was contested by Germany and Denmark, while the Netherlands abstained. In its current form, the proposal means that the legal guarantee period for consumer goods will be two years, and that this guarantee would apply to both new and secondhand goods, although the seller and purchaser will be free to enter a contractual agreement for a one year guarantee period for secondhand goods.

Once adopted, the new proposal will give MS up to 3 years to transpose the Directive into national law. The text must now go on to second reading before the European Parliament.

The Consumer Affairs Council also adopted a Directive relating to winding-up action for the protection of consumer interests, which aims at facilitating access to justice of EU consumers through their representatives (consumer associations or other qualified entities). Winding-up means action taken before the legal authorities of MS with a view to banning practices which are illegal under Community law and which are to the detriment of the collective interests of EU consumers (through opposition to the interests at stake in individual consumer disputes).