Consumer rights
Consumer legislation proposals must add value to consumers and provide opportunity for businesses.
Consumers are the lifeblood of reputable, reliable businesses. Meeting consumer needs is the purpose of any company in the retail and wholesale sector. Businesses depend on preserving their reputation and maintaining the trust of their customers.
Therefore, retailers and wholesalers often go well beyond the minimum legal requirements in order to win and retain customers and to have a competitive edge.
EuroCommerce supports EU initiatives designed to increase consumer confidence and boost cross-border trade. However, it is necessary to strike a balance between the interests of both businesses and consumers.
Key messages:
- Consumer satisfaction and confidence: The absolute priority of retail and wholesale is to respond to consumer expectations and evolve constantly with their needs. Consumers must be able to shop in the knowledge that they are well protected from dangerous products, disreputable traders and dishonest practices.
- Consumer redress: Any proposal on consumer redress must be practical, cost-effective, efficient, and recognise that most problems are settled directly between customers and businesses.
- Legislation and labelling: Consumer legislation proposals must add value to consumers and provide opportunity for businesses, as unnecessarily burdensome regulations result in high compliance costs and higher prices for consumers. The current confusing and contradictory labelling and information requirements need urgent review.