Following is some useful UK and EU consumer legislation, much of which I have had to use when something goes wrong. This information is not legal advice but a list of useful legislation with a brief explanation of its relevance. Before relying on the information below, you should seek professional legal advice, for example from Which Legal Service.
Section
14(2B)(e) of the Sale of Goods Act 1979
A UK retailer who sells you goods is responsible for ensuring that the goods
are durable. A manufacturer's warranty is in addition to, and does not replace,
the retailer's responsibilities. In many cases, it is reasonable to expect goods
to last for longer than any manufacturer's warranty period. This will depend
on the price paid and a reasonable expectation of the typical lifespan of the
goods. If the goods do not last a reasonable time, you have a right to request
the seller to repair or replace the goods under Section
48B.
Section
5 of the Limitation Act 1980
In England and Wales, you have up to six years to bring an action against a
supplier for breach of contract. A manufacturer's warranty with a shorter period
does not override this.
Article
8 of the Supply of Extended Warranties on Domestic Electrical Goods Order 2005
Most extended warranties expire before the retailer's obligations end under
Section
48B of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, and are therefore unnecessary.
If a retailer sells you an extended warranty, you can cancel it within 45 days.
Section
75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974
If you pay for goods or services on a UK-issued credit card costing between
£100 and £30,000, your card issuer is jointly liable with the supplier
for any failure, e.g. defective goods or if the supplier goes out of business.
This does not apply to transactions on debit cards or charge cards, neither
of which are a means of borrowing. Your card issuer is jointly liable for the
full amount, even if you pay only a small amount (e.g. £1) on the credit
card. This is particularly useful when paying a deposit for a brand new car,
provided that the total price of the car is not more than £30,000.
Section
13(1) of the Equality Act 2010
A business may not charge a higher price (e.g. for nightclub entry, dating web
site membership) to men than to women (or vice-versa).
The
Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999
If terms and conditions in a standard contract are unfair to the consumer, they
cannot be enforced.
Regulation
5(4)(g) of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008
A retailer must not give a misleading indication of the price of goods or services,
for example by excluding compulsory additional charges in order to make a price
look cheaper than it really is.
Article
1 of the Price Marking Order 2004 and Regulation
7(1)(a)(iii) of the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000
When prices are given to consumers, VAT must be included on prices of goods
always and on prices of services online or by phone. Prices given primarily
to businesses do not have to include VAT.
Regulation
14(1)(k) of the Value Added Tax Regulations 1995
When a retailer gives you a VAT invoice for an amount over £100, it must
show the amount of VAT charged.
Schedule
1 Regulation 20 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008
A retailer may not describe a product as "free" if you have to pay
for it or it is conditional upon paying for something else.
Article
7(5) of the Price Marking (Food and Drink Services) Order 2003
On a restaurant's menu, any compulsory service charge must be displayed at least
as prominently as the price of the food to which it relates. For example, a
mention of the service charge in small print on the last page is not sufficient.
Schedule
1 Regulation 7 of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008
An airline may not induce you to buy flight tickets during a promotional period
and then decrease the price of the same flight tickets immediately after the
promotional period.
Regulation
11 of the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000
If you buy goods online from a UK web site, you can cancel the purchase and
return the goods for a full refund (including the original delivery fee) up
to 7 working days following the day after which you receive the goods. If the
web site failed to inform you that you are responsible for the cost of returning
a cancelled purchase, then the web site must also bear the cost of returning
the goods.
Regulation
6(1)(c) of the Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002
Any UK web site, through which goods or services can be bought, must publish
an e-mail address through which it can be contacted. A contact form on a web
page does not suffice.
Regulation
7 of the Companies (Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2008
A UK company must display its company name, company number and registered office
address on its website and on correspondence.
Regulation
24 of the Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations 2000
If a UK business deliberately sends you goods that you did not ask for, you
can keep them or throw them away.
Article
19 of Directive 2011/83/EU on Consumer Rights, enacted in the UK
under the
Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012
Businesses may not charge consumers additional fees to use particular credit
or debit cards if those fees exceed the additional cost borne by the business.
For example, when it costs an airline 20p to process a single debit card payment
covering multiple flight segments for multiple passengers, the airline can no
longer make a surcharge of £6 per flight segment per passenger.
Regulation
22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003
An organisation may not send you unsolicited marketing e-mails unless you have
chosen to be a customer or prospective customer of the organisation and the
marketing is of similar products or services.
Regulation
70(1) of the Payment Services Regulations 2009
Outgoing bank transfers must reach the payee's account by the next business
day after the instructed valid payment date.
Regulation
73(1)&(2) of the Payment Services Regulations 2009
Incoming bank transfers must be immediately credited to your bank account or
credit card account upon receipt by your bank or card issuer. Your bank or card
issuer cannot, for example, post-date the transaction until the next day or
wait until the next day to make the funds available to you.
Article
3(1) of Regulation (EC) No 924/2009 on cross-border payments in the Community, enacted in
the UK under the
Cross-Border Payments in Euro Regulations 2003
For making or receiving electronic payments in euro to or from other European
countries, a bank located anywhere in the EU must charge the same as it does
for making or receiving payments in euro within the same country. In other words,
international payments in euro must cost the same as domestic payments in euro.
The
Credit Cards (Price Discrimination) Order 1990
UK credit card companies cannot force retailers to charge consumers the same
for credit card purchases as for cash purchases.
Section
18(3)(e) of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982
If a UK mobile phone network gives you a phone intended for use with its services
(perhaps with little or no up-front charge for the phone), the phone must be
sufficiently durable to last for the contract period of the services. Therefore
if the phone develops a fault before the contract has finished (and in many
cases for a long time afterwards), the mobile network is responsible for repairing
or replacing the phone under Section
11N.
Article
9(3)(a) of Council Directive 77/388 (“the Sixth VAT Directive”),
enacted in the UK under Article
19 of the Value Added Tax (Place of Supply of Services) Order 1992
You cannot be charged VAT when roaming with a UK mobile phone outside the European
Union's VAT area. The EU VAT area includes some non-EU territories such as the
Isle of Man and Monaco, but excludes some EU territories such as Gibraltar,
the Canary Islands and French overseas departments.
Regulation
(EU) No 531/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2012
on roaming on public mobile communications networks within the Union,
enacted in the UK under the
Mobile Roaming (European Communities) Regulations 2007
Limits are imposed on charges for using your mobile phone in other European
Economic Area countries and territories. Price limits are defined in euro which
are typically reduced on 1st July each year. You must be billed in per-second
increments for outgoing calls after the first 30 seconds and for incoming calls
from the beginning. You cannot be charged to receive text messages. The regulations
do not apply to EEA consumers using their mobile phones outside the EEA or on
their home network, or to non-EEA consumers using their mobile phones inside
the EEA.
Regulation
11 of the Telecommunications (Data Protection and Privacy) Regulations 1999
All UK phone companies must allow their customers to withhold their telephone
numbers when making outgoing calls, for example by prefixing the dialled number
with 141.
Article
21 of Directive 2011/83/EU on Consumer Rights (not yet enacted)
Customer service telephone lines will no longer be allowed to operate on prefixes
that cost more than a normal phone call, e.g. prefixes starting 084 and 087.
Article
7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 11 February 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance
to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay
of flights, and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 295/91
If you are delayed by an EU airline or are delayed when flying from an EU airport,
you may be entitled to statutory compensation from the airline, as well as certain
out-of-pocket expenses.
Article
23 of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of 24 September 2008 on common rules for
the operation of air services in the Community
Airlines must always indicate the final fare to be paid including all unavoidable
taxes and charges, and must additionally give a breakdown of certain taxes and
charges separately.
Article
3(2) of First Council Directive 72/166/EEC of 24 April 1972 on the approximation
of the laws of Member States relating to insurance against civil liability in
respect of the use of motor vehicles, and to the enforcement of the obligation
to insure against such liability
A motor insurance policy issued in an EU member state must provide the minimum
legal cover required by national laws when the vehicle is taken to other EU
member states. Note that insurers do not have to provide the same cover when
abroad as in the home country, although most do; uniquely some UK insurers do
not.
Section
54 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012
It is illegal to wheel clamp or tow away vehicles on private land. However,
land owners may now impose charges akin to penalties or fines for breaching
any advertised terms and conditions for parking.
Article
3(3) of the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic 1968
If a vehicle is legal for use in its country of registration, then it is legal
for use in any other signatory country. This allows you to take your car temporarily
to other countries without having to modify it to comply with another country's
laws.
Article
9(1) of the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic 1949
In any country on all two-way roads, traffic must drive always on the left or
always on the right. Countries are not allowed to have a mixture of roads where
traffic drives on different sides, such as Savoy Court in London or Hong Kong
in China.