Rapport toepassing richtlijn oneerlijke handelspraktijken

Mededeling van de Commissie aan het Europees Parlement, De Raad en Het Europees Economisch en Sociaal Comité over de toepassing van de richtlijn oneerlijke handelspraktijken, de verwezenlijking van een hoog niveau van consumentenbescherming, opbouw van vertrouwen in de interne markt, COM(2013) 138 final.

European Association of Communications Agencies bericht: The European Commission adopted its report on the effectiveness of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.

The report acknowledges that advertising plays a vital role in a functioning Single Market and is the main tool for companies to sell their products and services cross-border. Advertising allows companies to differentiate themselves openly: it stimulates competition, decreases prices and increases quality. At the same time, there are still concerns regarding two areas in particular:

• Green claims – claims such as "eco-friendly", "biodegradable", "sustainable" and "natural” are often seen as “very general, vague and not well-defined”, making it difficult to verify their truthfulness;

• Vulnerable Consumers: the report identifies as a concern “some aggressive practices targeting children, in the field of on-line games, as well as the elderly”, and underlines the importance of protecting vulnerable consumers.

The Commission concluded that updating the Directive is not yet necessary, since more experience in member states is needed before deciding on the success of the legislation.