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Consumer
Law
Ireland’s consumer protection legislation has evolved in the
years since Ireland's accession to the EEC in 1973. Ireland now
has a significant and well developed body of consumer protection
legislation and regulation with specific legislation in relation
to sale of goods and supply of services, consumer credit, consumer
contracts, package travel, product safety, distance contracts, doorstep
selling, and unfair terms in consumer contracts.
This body of consumer protection legislation provides not only for
redress on an individual basis in private law, but also in some
cases for state monitoring and criminal sanctions.
The E-Commerce Act, 2000 provides that all existing consumer legislation
applies to on-line contracts. The role of the Director of Consumer
Affairs is specifically extended to apply to all such on-line consumer
transactions. The Director is an independent statutory person with
wide-ranging powers and functions. These include the monitoring
of all aspects of the various pieces of consumer legislation, the
publication of information about this monitoring, the licensing
and regulation of certain types of business and the prosecution
of offences under the legislation.
Most
of the work in the area of consumer protection and electronic contracts
is driven by EU policy initiatives. The full implementation of the
EU E-Commerce Directive and the EU Distance Selling Directive will
lead to greater certainty of consumer protection and electronic
contracts.
On the 15th May 2001 the EU Distance Selling Directive (97/7/EC)
was implemented into Irish law by the European Communities (Protection
of Consumers in Respect of Contracts Made by Means of Distance Communications)
Regulations, 2001 (the 2001 Regulations). The implementation of
these 2001 Regulations considerably strengthen the protection available
to consumers in concluding distance contracts and increases the
obligations that must be met by suppliers of goods and services
by the means of distance contracts.
The
General Affairs Council of the EU adopted Council Directive on the
Protection of Consumers in respect of Distant Contracts (1997/7/EC)
on the 7th April 2001. The deadline for the implementation of this
Distance Contract Directive by member states is the 22nd December
2002.
On the 22nd of January 2003 the European Communities (certain aspects
of the Sale of Consumer Goods and Associated Guarantees) Regulations
2003 came into force transposing into Irish Law the provisions of
EU Directive 199/44/EC. These regulations implement new rules governing
contracts for consumer goods and associated guarantees.
The
Convention on Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Judgement in Civil
and Commercial Matters, signed on the 27th September 1968 (“the
Brussels Convention”) has recently been revised by the EU.
A new Regulation became law throughout the EU during 2002. Under
this Regulation, consumers within member states of the EU will be
able to sue in their own home country, retailers from whom they
have bought goods or services and it also will facilitate the enforcement
of any resulting judgement in the Courts of the suppliers’
country.
For further information or general enquiries contact: -
Patrick Ryan
Email: pryan@kilroys.ie
Telephone: +3531-439 5600
Fax: +3531-439 5601/439 5602
© Kilroys Solicitors 2002 - 2003
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