Last week, I posted a summary of the main changes the Proposed directive for empowering consumers for the green transition would bring to the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive. Today's second part will be devoted to the Consumer Rights Directive.
Next to preventing "greenwashing" and unsubstantiated claims, the Commission aims that consumers get the right information, that is information that allows to make them more sustainable choices - in particular choosing for more energy efficient, durable and reparable products.
Six items are added to the pre-contractual information requirements, both for distance and off-premises contracts and for other transactions coming under the scope of the Directive.
These six additional items concern guarantees, updates and repairs (including some complicated language about telling consumers what they have not received information on).
–information on the existence and length, of a producer’s commercial guarantee of durability for all types of goods, when this information is made available by the producer;
–information that no information has been provided by the producer about the existence of a producer’s guarantee of durability for energy-using goods;
–the existence and length of the period during which the producer commits to providing software updates for goods with digital elements;
–the existence and length of the period during which the provider commits to providing software updates for digital content and digital services;
–the reparability score of the good as applicable under Union law;
–other repair information, should no reparability score be available at Union level – such as information on the availability of spare parts and a repair manual.
The guarantee information, in particular, needs to be provided also in the context of contracts concluded with electronic means, before the consumer concludes the contract. This includes the possibly confusing "non-information" referred to above ("information that no information has been provided... about the existence of a producer's guarantee of durability"). The proposal explains that, for energy-using goods, providers also need to give information concerning durability when this can be easily and reliably calculated - so the "negative information" above means sellers would have to say something like "we make no promises as to the product's durability". The proposal explains that
The problem of limited durability contrary to consumer expectations is most relevant for energy-using goods, which are goods that function from an external energy source. Consumers are also most interested in receiving information about the expected durability of this category of goods. For these reasons, only for this category of goods, consumers should be made aware that the information about the existence of a producer’s commercial guarantee of durability of more than two years has not been provided by the producer.
While the reasoning seems plausible, the text is particularly clumsy and could use a clarification/exemplifications. Here's to the hope that it can be improved in the legislative process - form is substance, even in consumer law :).
Finally, it is interesting to observe that the reference to an applicable reparability score is, so far, aspirational - no such European scheme exists, despite the warm reception of the French initiative which for the first time established such scoring in Europe (the so-called "indice de réparabilité"). In this respect, a petition has been launched months ago by the Greens, but I could find no official update connecting this reference in the proposal to actual legislative initiatives in the indicated directions.
This is it for now - while normally information requirement may not be the most exciting of developments, the connected issues here, such as the reparability score and the fight against planned obsolescence all give us reason to think that there will be quite something to report on in the near future. Stay tuned!
