New European Commission Proposal For Directive On Collective Representative Actions

On 11 April 2018, the European Commission (the "Commission") published a new proposal on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers, and repealing Directive 2009/22/EC (the "Proposal"). In light of increasing cross-border trade and EU-wide commercial strategies, the Proposal aims to facilitate redress for consumers if there are widespread infringements of their rights in more than one EU Member State.

Under Directive 2009/22/EC, it was possible for qualified entities designated by EU Member States, such as consumer organisations or independent public bodies, to bring representative actions with the aim of stopping both domestic and cross-border infringements of EU consumer law. However, the aim of the Proposal is to extend this possibility in order to allow consumers to obtain redress, such as compensation, repair, replacement, price reduction, contract termination, or reimbursement of the price paid.