MEPs on the European Parliament’s Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) strengthened consumer protection by voting on Tuesday 28 March on adapting EU rules on distance contracts for financial services to the digital age.
The report by Arba Kokalari (EPP, Swedish) on the modernisation of directive 2002/65/EC, proposed for May 2022, was adopted by 25 votes to none with 18 abstentions (see EUROPE 13132/11).
“This proposal upholds strong consumer protection, harmonises rules in the EU single market and makes it easier for consumers to withdraw from distance contracts online. It shall be just as easy to withdraw from a contract, as it is to conclude a contract”, Ms Kokalari said.
According to the report, the trader should provide information in good time before the conclusion of the contract.
The withdrawal function should be clearly identified, easily accessible and available at all times during the cooling-off period. Consumers will have 14 calendar days to withdraw from the contract, without penalty and without having to provide an explanation. MEPs extend the standard period to 30 calendar days for distance contracts related to personal pension transactions.
No to dark patterns. Financial service providers should be prohibited from misleading or influencing consumers to make choices that may be against their interests. So exploitative website designs, more difficult termination of a contract, using pre-ticked boxes, making certain choices more difficult or time-consuming must therefore be banned.
To prevent misleading ‘influencer marketing’ practices, any person or company wishing to advertise a financial services product on social media has to prominently label whether they have the appropriate competence to do so and whether they have received any remuneration for the promotion.
The Parliament will decide in April. The Council of the EU did so in early March (see EUROPE 13133/2). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)