Redress and Enforcement
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27 January 2021 BEUC launches Europe-wide complaint against Nintendo for premature obsolescenceFollowing nearly 25,000 complaints from European consumers, BEUC and its members have submitted a complaint about Nintendo to the European Commission and national consumer protection authorities for systematic problems with the functionality of the Nintendo Switch console. |
13 November 2020 Consumer groups welcome new EU consumer policy strategy for the next five yearsToday the European Commission adopted the “Consumer Agenda”, its consumer policy strategy for the next five years. It lays down the Commission’s consumer policy objectives and will serve as guidance to include consumer interests in all policy areas. Focus areas are the green and digital transition as well as the post-COVID economic recovery. |
18 September 2020 Five years after Dieselgate scandal, Volkswagen still failing to compensate European consumersA report from The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) released five years after the Dieselgate scandal finds that VW is continuing its stalling tactics, exploiting legal loopholes and taking advantage of the uneven access to justice of European consumers. In short, the report confirms that VW is doing everything to avoid compensation payments to EU consumers – while paying out $9.5 billion in compensation to defrauded US car owners just months after the scandal broke. It also highlights that Europe’s legal systems lack the necessary tools to tackle mass claims. |
Our work areas
Besides our efforts to improve laws, their enforcement and providing redress when they are breached are also focal points of our work. National enforcement authorities need adequate powers to investigate and stop infringements, while they should cooperate among themselves and with consumer associations to ensure coherent enforcement of consumer rights throughout the EU.
If consumers are harmed, various redress tools, including independent Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and effective Collective Redress procedures, should be available for consumers to obtain the compensation to which they are entitled. Our work has recently expanded to cover EU competition policy where the EU can take action against monopolies in the market which harm consumer choice
Our objectives
- Collective Redress procedures have to be available and efficient in all Member States
- Consumers being able to rely on independent ADR bodies, available in all sectors with common adherence of business
- Enforcement stepped up throughout the EU
- Encouraging the EU to continue to be a strong player in competition policy
