On 1 July 2024, Act No. 108/2024 Coll. on Consumer Protection and on amendments to certain acts took effect.
The new Consumer Protection Act contains a new general legal regulation of consumer protection as well as a special regulation for distance contracts and off-premises contracts. The main aim of the new legislation was to eliminate duplication and internal inconsistencies between the provisions of several legal regulations that affected, or still affect, consumer protection.
The new Consumer Protection Act also aims to unify terminology, not only within the legislation of the Slovak Republic but also with the terminology used throughout the European Union. This is linked to the introduction of entirely new terms (whether terms replacing those used so far or newly introduced legal institutions), as a result of which our traders (previously referred to as suppliers) are obliged to incorporate these new terms into their general terms and conditions and other documentation through which they communicate with their customers (consumers) or through which they conclude contracts with consumers.
The new Consumer Protection Act repealed and replaced the following special acts:
- Act No. 250/2007 Coll. on Consumer Protection,
- Act No. 102/2014 Coll. on Consumer Protection in the Sale of Goods or Provision of Services under a Distance Contract or an Off-Premises Contract, and
- Act No. 299/2019 Coll. on Supervision and Assistance in Addressing Unjustified Geo-blocking of Customers in the Internal Market.
Significant changes have also been made to the regulation of the trader’s liability for defects in products, in other words to the complaints procedure. The previous legal regulation of the complaints procedure was not uniform; it can be said that it was almost chaotically scattered between the provisions of the Civil Code and the provisions of the special Consumer Protection Act. The new Consumer Protection Act therefore also brought a significant amendment to the Civil Code, and with effect from 1 July, liability for defects in consumer contracts is governed exclusively by the Civil Code. This step abolished the parallel regulation of the complaints procedure.
The new Consumer Protection Act is an extensive piece of legislation, so the aim of this article is not to analyse it in detail. Our aim is to draw traders’ attention to the fact that, in specific cases, the new legislation may require at least the following changes and updates to their documentation:
- updating terminology and adjusting the definitions of certain terms in line with the current legislation, as already mentioned above,
- updating the model withdrawal form in accordance with the model form set out in Annex 2 to the Consumer Protection Act,
- updating the information on exercising the right of withdrawal in accordance with the information set out in Annex 3 to the Consumer Protection Act,
- adjusting the time limits for the consumer’s withdrawal from the contract,
- replacing references to repealed legislation with references to current legislation,
- any other updates and additions with regard to the specific features of the trader.
So if you are a business – a trader selling and providing products (goods, services and other performance under the new legislation) to consumers, do not hesitate to contact our law firm and we will bring your documentation into line with the new legal situation.
