Report from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee. First report on the application of Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and

This Report provides a first assessment of the application of Directive 2005/29/EC on Unfair Commercial Practices (‘the UCPD’) in the Member States and evaluates its effects. The Report is one of the key initiatives undertaken with a view to implementing the European Consumer Agenda. For the purpose of this Report, targeted questionnaires were addressed to Member States and a wide range of stakeholders in the course of 2011. As regards the application of the Directive in the fields of financial services and immovable property, this Report relies on data collected on behalf of the Commission through a study conducted in 2011/2012.

The UCPD was adopted on 11 May 2005. It seeks to ensure that consumers are not misled or exposed to aggressive marketing and that any claim made by traders in the EU is clear, accurate and substantiated, thus enabling consumers to make informed and meaningful choices. Its principle-based provisions are meant to guarantee that the legislative framework is flexible enough to cope with new selling methods, products and marketing techniques.

The Directive is horizontal in nature and covers the totality of business-to-consumer (‘B2C’) transactions whether offline or online, involving both goods and services. The general aims of the Directive are to contribute to the completion of the internal market by removing barriers that are due to differences in the national laws on unfair commercial practices and to provide a high level of consumer protection.

See also:
- Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee on the application of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive - Achieving a high level of consumer protection - Building trust in the Internal Market

ESO: Background Information: Putting a stop to marketing scams: European Commission takes action to strengthen enforcement against unfair commercial practices http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-putting-a-stop-to-marketing-scams-european-commission-takes-action-to-strengthen-enforcement-against-unfair-commercial-practices/

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