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This law aims to rebalance the powers between consumers and professionals, to improve the daily life of the French people by freeing up purchasing power. Concretely , what are the main novelties ?
Group action:
Since October 1, 2014, anyone who feels they are the victim of abusive billing by a professional can join a collective action to obtain compensation for the material damage suffered on the occasion. of an act of consumption. The action must be brought by one of the 15 nationally approved consumer associations. If the judge establishes the liability of the professional, he sets the amount of compensation to be awarded to each of the consumers.
The termination of auto, home and borrower insurance contracts made easier:
Since January 1, 2015, you can terminate your auto or multi-risk home insurance contract at any time after one year of contract. You don’t have to wait for an anniversary date to change insurers.
In the same way, you can terminate your borrower’s insurance, in the context of a home loan, for another cheaper offer (for one year from the signing of the offer) and for all loans taken out from the July 26, 2014. Consequently, for one year from the signing of the loan, you can replace the insurance initially contracted with your loan by any other less expensive insurance offering the same guarantees as those offered by your bank.
Elimination of unjustified costs:
– Parking rates: since July 1, 2015, pricing is done to the nearest quarter of an hour and no longer by the hour, so if you park for 30 minutes you will no longer have to pay half an hour. overtime that you were unfairly charged before;
– Driving schools: since March 19, 2014, you no longer have to pay fees for any transfer or return of your file;
– Retirement homes, for any contract concluded since March 19, 2014, can no longer invoice the entire month started when a resident leaves or dies. Also, the retirement home can only charge the cost of restoring the room if an inventory has been carried out at the entrance and exit and that the latter proves the need to carry out work at the expense of the resident ;
– The additional costs invoiced by essential service providers (energy, water, telecom) in the event of rejection of a direct debit are canceled for people in a difficult financial situation.
Better regulated consumption:
– Extension of the legal guarantee for products from 6 months to 2 years: during this period you do not have to take out an additional paid guarantee to be protected against a lack of conformity of the product. Since March 18, 2016, you can therefore obtain a refund or replace the product in the event of non-compliance regardless of the use you have made of the product;
– The professional has the obligation, since March 1, 2015, to inform you of the availability of spare parts that you may need to repair the product. The manufacturer will then be required to provide them within 2 months to the seller or professional repairer.
Buy and consume transparently:
– The creation of a “homemade” mention on restaurant menus since July 15, 2014 (modified on May 6, 2015) tells you that the dishes you are going to eat are made from raw products processed directly in the kitchens of the restaurant ;
– Better information on the origin of products thanks to the creation of geographical indications. Since June 4, 2015, it has been easier for consumers to identify manufactured products from our region (eg Limoges porcelain, Calais lace, etc.).
Better protected consumption:
– Better consumer information: prior to purchase, trade professionals must provide complete information on the product, payment terms, possible delivery restrictions, etc. The consumer must make a commitment in full knowledge of the facts. Since June 13, 2014, the “consumer rights” directive has therefore been transposed for this purpose;
– Better protection against forced sales: it is a question of protecting the consumer from these paid options added to online purchases via pre-ticked boxes that we do not necessarily notice but which are automatically invoiced to us. For example, when you buy a plane ticket online most of the time the cancellation insurance box is already checked, if you do not uncheck it, and you do not want it, you will be charged for it without your knowledge. It is therefore a forced sale.
– Extension of the withdrawal period from 7 days to 14 days: the consumer has an additional week to reconsider his initial opinion and cancel the purchase without any penalty. This measure does not apply to purchases made at fairs or shows;
– In the event of withdrawal or cancellation of the purchase, the professional must reimburse you within 14 days maximum.
– Since June 1, 2016 you can register on a list to no longer be approached by telephone.
The orange list already existed but its effectiveness proved to be insufficient. You can therefore double your approach with a registration on this new list. If the calls continue, you can notify the DGCCRF (General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control) which will not fail to sanction the professional.
Société d’Avocats DAMY , Nice, The consumer law of March 17, 2014: new features for my daily life, Update 2022
