Consumer's Telegram April 2024

Insert of n. 29 - Editorial office: Centro Europeo Consumatori (European Consumer Centre Italy - Bolzano office)

MYSTERY BOX

Bargain or risky lottery?

A ‘Mystery Box’ is a box sold without revealing its contents, purchased in the hope of finding items of greater value than the price paid. The element of surprise is at the heart of this experience, which has also gone viral on social media platforms. Unfortunately there are quite a few questionable aspects to be considered. Firstly, companies offering this type of blind sale exclude, at least once the contents of the package have been opened, in their contractual conditions the right of withdrawal that must be guaranteed by law. In addition, the exclusions also concern the legal guarantee for conformity defects and liability for dangerous products. Needless to say, these are also unlawful exclusions. The European Consumer Centre Italy (ECC) together with the Centro Tutela Consumatori Utenti (CTCU) were curious to try the experience of buying a box in the dark. Watch the video to see how it turned out.

E-COMMERCE

Second-hand goods purchased online: numerous breaches of consumer protection rules

Consumer protection authorities from 25 EU Member States, Iceland and Norway carried out a ‘sweep’ of a total of 356 second-hand goods websites or web portals to check compliance with consumer protection rules. 185 of these sites, i.e. 52%, were found to be problematic: 40% did not provide clear information on the right of withdrawal, 45% did not provide correct information on the right to return faulty goods or goods not complying with the advertised description, 57% did not respect the minimum guarantee period of one year required by law for second-hand goods. Furthermore, it was found that sometimes environmental declarations were insufficiently documented or were even blatantly false, misleading or could be classified as unfair commercial practices. Some companies did not declare their identity correctly and others did not indicate the total price of the goods. More information is available on the European Commission's website.

E-COMMERCE

What is know your customer (KYC)?

KYC -know your customer- is a process through which companies verify a consumer's online identity through two-factor authentication (password + temporary code), electronic identification (eID) or digital signature. It is used in banking, e-commerce and telecommunications to prevent fraud and money laundering, but also for targeted marketing: personalised offers, restricted access to payments, blocking of accounts (which sometimes prove to be unjustified). However, this type of procedure also raises many questions in terms of data protection. To learn more, visit the ECC website.

CASE OF THE MONTH
An Austrian consumer ordered two candles from an Italian website. After receiving the goods, she wanted to withdraw from the purchase and send the candles, which were still in their original packaging, back to the retailer. However, the online shop refused the withdrawal claiming that the candles were flammable goods and therefore could not be returned. Despite the fact that the consumer pointed out to the company that the candles did not fall into the categories of products for which the legislator excludes the right of withdrawal, the company insisted on its position. The Consumer Rights Directive provides for the exclusion of the right of withdrawal only for certain categories of goods explicitly mentioned (e.g. customised goods or perishable goods, underwear no longer in its original sealed packaging, etc.). The complaint finally reached ECC Italy via ECC Austria. After our intervention, the seller allowed the return of the goods and the consumer received a refund.