What are the types of problems the EU consumers experienced in cross-border shopping online? The nature of consumers complaints fall under eight separate categories: delivery, product/service, contract terms, price and payment, redress, selling techniques/Unfair Commercial Practices (UCP), fraud, etc. The top three categories are delivery, product/service and contract terms. Together these categories gave rise to 84 % of the total number of consumer complaints and disputes received by the ECC-Net in 2008, and 83 % in 2009. There is no relevant change in comparison to 2007 (86 %), which shows that the key problem areas remain unchanged.
The report explores cross-border consumer complaints from different perspectives in order to gain a better insight to the nature of legal and practical problems consumers face in the EU, and to identify the areas requiring solution in order to raise consumer confidence in cross-border online shopping.
A Lithuanian consumer ordered a TV set from a French website, and it was delivered broken to the consumer. The consumer tried to contact the web trader unsuccessfully. After the intervention of the consumer and trader ECCs the consumer received a new TV set. This is one of numerous ECC-Net cases illustrating the report.
The total number of cases that required the intervention of an ECC in order to reach an amicable settlement in consumer disputes was 2,088 in 2008 and 3,158 in 2009. However, the report indicates that the biggest number of consumer complaints and disputes received by the ECC-Net involved German web traders: this makes 37 % of the total number of e-commerce related complaints and disputes in 2008, and 34 % in 2009. German, French, British, Luxembourgian and Dutch web traders feature at the top.
Taking into account recent IT developments the report addresses at length issues related to digital content, price display and methods of payment. The data and information in the report aims to facilitate discussions on better enforcement of consumer rights in e-commerce.
The ECC network comprises the European Consumer Centres in 29 countries (27 EU Member States, plus Norway and Iceland), and is co-funded by the Health and Consumer Protection Directorate-General of the European Commission and by each of the Member States. The aim of the network is to create confidence in the European internal market by providing consumers with useful information on their rights under the European Union consumer legislation, and providing advice and assistance in the resolution of individual cross-border complaints.
It is expected that the ECC-Net report “The European Online Marketplace: Consumer Complaints 2008-2009” will contribute to the enhanced trust of individual consumers in cross-border online transactions in the European Union.
The report explores cross-border consumer complaints from different perspectives in order to gain a better insight to the nature of legal and practical problems consumers face in the EU, and to identify the areas requiring solution in order to raise consumer confidence in cross-border online shopping.
A Lithuanian consumer ordered a TV set from a French website, and it was delivered broken to the consumer. The consumer tried to contact the web trader unsuccessfully. After the intervention of the consumer and trader ECCs the consumer received a new TV set. This is one of numerous ECC-Net cases illustrating the report.
The total number of cases that required the intervention of an ECC in order to reach an amicable settlement in consumer disputes was 2,088 in 2008 and 3,158 in 2009. However, the report indicates that the biggest number of consumer complaints and disputes received by the ECC-Net involved German web traders: this makes 37 % of the total number of e-commerce related complaints and disputes in 2008, and 34 % in 2009. German, French, British, Luxembourgian and Dutch web traders feature at the top.
Taking into account recent IT developments the report addresses at length issues related to digital content, price display and methods of payment. The data and information in the report aims to facilitate discussions on better enforcement of consumer rights in e-commerce.
The ECC network comprises the European Consumer Centres in 29 countries (27 EU Member States, plus Norway and Iceland), and is co-funded by the Health and Consumer Protection Directorate-General of the European Commission and by each of the Member States. The aim of the network is to create confidence in the European internal market by providing consumers with useful information on their rights under the European Union consumer legislation, and providing advice and assistance in the resolution of individual cross-border complaints.
It is expected that the ECC-Net report “The European Online Marketplace: Consumer Complaints 2008-2009” will contribute to the enhanced trust of individual consumers in cross-border online transactions in the European Union.