Brussels, 07/07/2009 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission wants to put in place for an EU-wide method for classifying and reporting consumer complaints and has called for comments from stakeholders to help it determine the most appropriate methodology for achieving this aim.
Analysis of the EU-wide data will be a powerful way to help assess how different sectors and national markets are performing for consumers, and enable authorities at national and EU level to more quickly and effectively target markets which are failing consumers. The Commission set out the broad lines in a communication on Tuesday 7 July, at the same time as it launched the public consultation exercise. Interested parties have until 5 October to submit their comments.
“When a consumer decides to go through the stress and effort of filing a complaint this usually means that the case is serious. And a flood of similar complaints can be a strong sign of a market that is failing consumers. The method which we are offering today is meant to make sure that the voice of dissatisfied consumers is heard clearly and early enough both in their national capitals and in Brussels,” said European Consumer Protection Commissioner Meglena Kuneva.
About half of European consumers, who are dissatisfied with how their original complaint was handled by a trader, turn to a third party such as a consumer organisation or regulator for help. Most of the 700 complaint-handling organisations that exist in Europe use their own classifications, making an overview very difficult, even at national level.
The Commission believes that analysis of EU-wide data will be an excellent way of assessing how different sectors and national markets are performing for consumers. It would also enable national and EU authorities more quickly and effectively to target markets which are failing consumers.
The draft that the Commission is putting out to public consultation offers a standardised way of collecting complaints, using a common grid of criteria for classifying cases. The criteria include, for example, the selling method (e.g. a shop or an online purchase), the type of business (e.g. a supermarket or a petrol station), and the product category (e.g. electronic goods or life insurance). Complaints are one of the five key indicators used by the Consumer Markets Scoreboard (see EUROPE 9831)
of how markets are performing for consumers, along with consumer satisfaction, prices, switching suppliers and safety.
Third parties will be free to use the system and to submit their data to the European Commission. The Commission will then make the data public through the annual Consumer
Markets Scoreboard.
In 2008, the Commission asked the stakeholders about their views on the idea of a harmonised EU-wide classification. 80 % of those responding were in favour of the idea. The Commission proposal was developed in collaboration with a group of experts representing complaints-collecting bodies.
The text of the communication, the working document setting out the draft methodology and the online questionnaire can be viewed at: http: //ec.europa.eu/yourvoice/consultations/index_en.htm and http: //ec.europa.eu/consumers/strategy/complaints_en.htm (A.N./transl.rt)