This innovation, entering into force this current Friday, will entail serious structural consequences both for end consumers and for commercial representatives. At the same time, representatives of the commercial sector have already expressed their concerns regarding the growth of costs, predicting possible abuses on the part of buyers and technical failures during the integration of new interfaces. (but to bad dancers, it is known what hinders, and good ones simply adapt their sites to the new requirements. Business is not philanthropy. you either win or are bankrupt – ed.)
The one who concludes a contract in the global network most frequently does so with the help of a single click confirming agreement with the terms of the offer.
However, the termination of such an agreement until recent times not infrequently resembled a complex digital quest in search of email addresses of the support service and feedback forms hidden deep in the interface.
With this Friday, June 19, such an opaque practice will stop, since the presence of a special interactive cancellation button will become an obligatory legal requirement on websites and in mobile applications. The clearly formulated goal of the legislators consists in that in the future, the processing of an online cancellation becomes possible just as quickly and uncomplicatedly as the purchase procedure itself.
The new rigid rules extend practically to the entire sphere of electronic commerce in the segment of business interaction with physical persons (B2C), that is, the rules begin to operate when commercial companies conduct business with private individuals. Regardless of whether it is a question of a large international parcel giant, a small specialized family store, a streaming service, or an educational platform — each subject who offers goods and services in the network must provide a cancellation function.
On large trading platforms, such as Amazon and eBay, the responsibility for the technical integration of the function is assigned to the operators of these platforms, who are obliged to ensure the uninterrupted operation of the tool for all third-party sellers.
The installation of the button is required everywhere where consumers, in accordance with the Civil Code, in any case are due a legal right to the cancellation of a transaction. Thus, the rule operates during classic purchases of goods on the internet, remote ordering of services, acquisition of any digital content, including subscriptions to multimedia services, as well as during the processing of financial products, such as consumer loans and insurance policies concluded in a digital network.
Processing of a Cancellation in Two Clicks
For the exclusion of accidental or erroneous cancellations in the process of using the site, the legislation provides a clear two-stage process. On the pages of online stores, a easily distinguishable button with a understandable and unambiguous inscription must be placed, for example “Cancel contract”.
Pressing on it automatically redirects the consumer to a special overview page where it is required to enter only a minimal regulatory set of necessary data for identification, such as name, order number, and email address.
At the same time, the seller by law does not have the right to require the obligatory indication of the reason for cancellation. The final pressing on the confirmation button completes the procedure, after which the commercial representative is obliged to immediately direct an automatic notification of the receipt of the application to the email of the client.
Representatives of the Federal Association of Consumer Protection Centers (vzbv) emphasize that the new rule substantially increases the level of comfort, safety, and transparency for buyers. Along with this, the material right to cancellation of a purchase itself because of this technical innovation does not change. The procedure can still be implemented only within the strictly established by law period. This period in the majority of cases constitutes 14 days from the moment of the conclusion of the contract or the receipt of the ordered goods by the addressee.
According to the results of a representative sociological survey conducted by the research institute YouGov, 79% of respondents believe that the obligatory appearance of such a function significantly simplifies the process of canceling online purchases.
Only 8% of those polled hold the opposite opinion, and 13% abstained from a response. Every third participant of the study separately noted that the presence of an accessible cancellation button increases his psychological readiness to make new purchases on the internet. In the survey that took place from June 8 to June 10, 2 thousand people in Germany at the age from 18 years took part. And the margin of error is within the limits of the sociological norm.
The Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection Stefanie Hubig (SPD) emphasized that it will become significantly simpler for citizens to terminate contracts concluded on the internet: “An end to endless searches and tedious transitions via links”.
According to her, this saves time, spares nerves, and improves protection against unwanted agreements. Hubig called the changes an important achievement in the sphere of consumer protection and a fair solution: “After all, if it is possible to conclude a contract on the internet without the slightest effort, then its termination must be just as simple”.
Industry Associations Spoke with Criticism of the Innovations
Profile unions criticized the introduction of the obligatory rule, pointing to the redundancy of regulation. “Already today, the process of cancellation and return in online stores of local suppliers is organized without any problems and maximally simply,” asserts the executive director of the German Retail Federation (HDE) Stefan Genth. In his opinion, the right to cancellation has long been known to German consumers. Genth points to the fact that the new rigid prescriptions are connected with a substantial bureaucratic and financial load primarily for small enterprises.
(Genth apparently lives on another planet and does not know how German online stores actually work in reality – ed.)
A critical position is occupied also by the Federal Association of E-Commerce and Distance Selling (bevh). The head of the organization Alien Mulyk noted that many sellers already now voluntarily provide longer periods for return than is provided by law. In her opinion, the appearance of the new button will lead to confusion among buyers. “This noticeably increases the risks of receiving expensive legal warnings on the part of competitors”. In addition, additional cyber threats arise. Theoretically, automated programs (bots) can make mass false orders, and then centrally cancel them. Owners of sites will have to adopt expensive protective measures against similar actions.
(Theoretically these programs can make fake orders too, but this does not happen though – Ed.)
Representatives of the Federal Association of Online Commerce (BDOA) consider the simplification of the procedure an redundant step on the part of the state. Executive director Heidi Kneller-Gronen asserts that this right is already not infrequently abused: “They order new shoes, and return old, worn ones. Or they take expensive coffee machines for holding a big party, actively use them, and after the end of the event process a cancellation”. The financial losses of trading companies from such actions are very high. In connection with this, the organization requires the establishment of clear legal boundaries for the prevention of similar obvious abuses.
(I would recommend to the esteemed executive director for a start to study the Law on Consumer Rights, where it is clearly indicated that shoes, underwear, and even coffee machines are not subject to return if it is seen that they were in use – Ed.)
Thus, the reform of electronic commerce in Germany has sharpened the discussion between defenders of consumer rights and representatives of small unorganized business. While the ministry of justice reports on the elimination of digital barriers for citizens, trade associations are preparing for the adaptation of IT infrastructure and the minimization of so-called risks connected with automated attacks of bots and dishonest behavior of buyers. The coming months will show how effectively the new system will balance the interests of both sides.
Source: dpa
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