The EU's Council of Ministers voted to adopt the Consumer
Rights Directive on Monday 10th October 2011 following
previous approval given by the European Parliament. The Directive
will come into force when it is published in the Official Journal
of the European Union and member states will have two years from
that date to implement the measures into national law, which means
English law will change before the end of 2013.
The following link is to the approved Directive.
http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/11/pe00/pe00026.en11.pdf
The previous rules
The previous rules on EU consumer protection result from four EU
Directives - Unfair Contract Terms, Sale for Consumer Goods and
associated guarantees, Distance Selling and Doorstep Selling. These
directives contain certain minimum requirements which the 27 Member
States have adopted in an ad hoc and inconsistent manner, which has
led to an unsatisfactory position for both business and consumers.
The Consumer
