Consumer Protection

New market surveillance framework in the EU

  • 2020/10/16
  • kutatocsoport5

Many things have changed in the global economy over the last 40 years. The trade of goods used to be carried out through relatively controllable and predictable routes, so the market surveillance measures, institutions and powers that could form the foundations of an efficient system are now not necessarily capable of providing the same high level of consumer safety. Rules created in the context of identifiable manufacturers, distributors established in the internal market, physical shops and markets are no longer suitable for facing the market surveillance challenges of the online market. Read more... (Zsolt Hajnal)

A Challenge for the EU’s Average Consumer Concept

  • 2020/05/17
  • kutatocsoport5

To a certain degree, owing to informational asymmetry, a difference in negotiating power and a relative lack of transparency, and due to the ever-present risk of falling victim to unfair commercial practices, all consumers can be considered vulnerable or disadvantaged when it comes to business-to-consumer transactions. This is especially the case in those consumer markets that involve particularly complex transactions, such as the financial products and services market. In the light of these issues, this article focuses on the European Union's concept of the ‘average consumer’ and its interpretation by the European Court of Justice (ECJ), particularly in cases concerning problematic markets. Read more... (Daniel Szilágyi)

Financial consumer protection and the European Social Model

  • 2019/06/11
  • kutatocsoport5

This article argues that the extension of the additional protection against unfair commercial practices - provided only to a strictly limited group of consumers in other areas of consumer protection - to all consumers in the field of financial consumer protection could potentially be justified. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of promoting financial literacy, which would require the development of up-to-date financial education and awareness programmes: through the use of its education and training policy instruments, the European Union could promote the availability of these programmes across all member states. Read more... (Daniel Szilágyi)