On the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on amending Directives 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU as regards empowering consumers for the green transition through better protection against unfair practices and better information
A-9-2023-0099
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection · Rapporteur: Biljana Borzan
Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.
Parliament's amended version of the Commission proposal for a directive amending Directives 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU to empower consumers for the green transition. It bans unfair practices such as greenwashing, generic environmental claims, carbon-offsetting-based neutrality claims and early obsolescence practices, and requires pre-contractual information on durability, reparability and software updates.¶¶¶ It introduces a label showing the duration of the legal guarantee of conformity and any voluntary extension, and requires traders to inform consumers about spare parts, repair manuals and repair restrictions.¶¶¶ It requires the Commission to report on the application of the directive and to present easy-to-understand guidelines for businesses, taking into account the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises.¶¶¶
Committee position. The committee proposes to strengthen the Commission proposal by regulating sustainability labels and information tools, banning future environmental claims based solely on carbon offsetting, introducing a guaranteed lifespan label, requiring information on spare parts and repair, and banning all forms of premature obsolescence.¶¶¶
Key points
- Environmental claims must be reliable, clear, understandable and fair; companies also have a role in promoting the green transition.¶
- Article 6(1) of Directive 2005/29/EC is amended to add environmental or social impact, durability, reusability, recyclability and reparability to the main characteristics of a product.¶¶
- Future environmental performance claims based solely on carbon offsetting schemes are prohibited; other such claims need clear, objective, quantified, science-based and verifiable commitments, a detailed and realistic implementation plan with budgetary and technological commitments, feasible targets and independent monitoring.¶¶
- Comparisons of products based on environmental or social aspects must provide information on the method, the products compared, the suppliers and measures to keep information up to date, and must be objective.¶
- Sustainability labels not based on a certification scheme or not established by public authorities are prohibited; certification schemes must meet transparency, credibility, third-party monitoring and complaints-system conditions.¶¶
- Generic environmental claims such as 'environmentally friendly', 'eco-friendly', 'green', 'natural', 'sustainable' or 'climate neutral' are prohibited without evidence of recognised excellent environmental performance relevant to the claim.¶¶
- Practices associated with early obsolescence are prohibited, including introducing features that limit durability, marketing goods that require replacing consumables earlier than necessary, and marketing goods designed to limit functionality with non-original consumables, spare parts or accessories.¶¶¶
- Claiming that a good has a certain durability when it does not, and marketing a good that does not allow repair in accordance with legal requirements or failing to inform the consumer that a good is not repairable, are prohibited.¶¶¶
- Traders must provide pre-contractual information on durability, reparability and the availability of software updates, including the minimum period after placement on the market during which the producer provides updates.¶¶¶
- Traders must provide a label indicating the duration of the legal guarantee of conformity and, if relevant, its voluntary extension in the form of a commercial guarantee of durability; the label must be displayed prominently and legibly.¶¶¶
- Traders must provide information on the availability and maximum price expected of spare parts, the minimum period during which spare parts and accessories are available, the procedure for ordering them, and the availability of user and repair manuals, diagnosis and repair tools and services.¶¶¶
- The Commission must submit a report on the application of the directive and on progress achieved, including an assessment of its contribution to consumer protection and effects on businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.¶¶
Who is affected
- Traders selling goods to consumers must provide pre-contractual information on durability, reparability, updates and guarantees.¶¶¶
- Producers must make relevant information available to traders so they can comply with information obligations.¶¶
- Consumers benefit from better protection against unfair practices and better information on sustainability, durability and reparability.¶¶¶
- Small and medium-sized enterprises are considered in Commission guidelines to keep administrative and financial burdens to a minimum.¶
Figures and deadlines
- Legal guarantee of conformity of two years, which traders may refer to on the label when offering products in more than one Member State.¶
- Report on the application of the directive to be submitted by 5 years from adoption.¶
- Label format uses 'XX Years + YY Years', where XX is the duration of the legal guarantee of conformity and YY the voluntary extension.¶
Legal basis: Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.¶