Two out of three e-commerce sites in the EU selling clothes and shoes, furniture and household goods or electrical appliances do not respect basic consumer rights guaranteed by EU law, according to the results of an EU-wide screening (‘sweep’) published by the European Commission on Friday 31 January.
This screening involved 500 e-commerce sites. It was carried out by the national consumer protection authorities of 27 Member States and coordinated by the Commission.
The EU Consumer Rights Directive stipulates that, when making an online purchase, every consumer must receive clear, correct and comprehensible information on the delivery terms, the right of withdrawal and the legal guarantee in the event of a defective product.
However, more than a quarter of the sites examined did not inform consumers of their right of withdrawal within 14 days of receipt of the good without having to provide a justification.
Almost half of the sites did not clearly indicate the deadline for returning the good within 14 days from the moment the consumer notified the e-commerce site of his or her intention to withdraw.
In more than one out of five websites, the price initially indicated was incomplete, as it contained neither delivery charges, postal charges or other possible additional costs, nor information on the possibility of such charges.
More than a third of the sites did not inform consumers about the minimum two-year legal guarantee.
The national authorities will now carry out an in-depth investigation into these irregularities. Traders will then be asked to bring their websites into compliance. National consumer protection authorities will ensure full compliance by traders. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)