Consumer Protection in Croatia with a Special Emphasis on Distance and Off-Premises Contracts Cover Image

Zaštita prava potrošača u Republici Hrvatskoj s posebnim osvrtom na ugovore sklopljene izvan poslovnih prostorija ponuditelja i ugovore na daljinu
Consumer Protection in Croatia with a Special Emphasis on Distance and Off-Premises Contracts

Author(s): Tunjica Petrašević, Paula Poretti
Subject(s): Law on Economics, EU-Legislation
Published by: Centar za društvena istraživanja
Keywords: European Union; consumers; distance contracts; offpremises contracts; Directive 2011/83/EU; Directive on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (Directive on consumer ADR);

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this paper is to present consumer protection in Croatia with special emphasis on distance and off-premises contracts. The focus in this paper is on a rather narrow, but extremely important field of consumer protection. Namely, it depicts situations in which consumer is unprepared and unable to reconsider a purchase of a certain product or service. In the first part of the paper a brief overview of the development of consumer protection in Croatia is presented, from the Stabilization and Association Agreement in 2001 until the present. Then, in the second part of the paper novelties which were brought to the „new“ Consumer protection Act by the implementation of Directive 2011/83/EU on consumer rights, in the manner that regulation of distance contracts are presented prior to the regulation of off-premises contracts. In the third part of the paper establishment of out-of-court resolution of consumer disputes according to Directive on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes (Directive on consumer ADR) and Regulation on online dispute resolution for consumer disputes (Regulation on consumer ODR) are presented. Solutions which could enable simplified and efficient resolution of both national and cross-border disputes within a system of alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes originating from distance and off-premises contracts are analysed and a critical consideration of their implementation in Croatian consumer protection legislation is carried out.

  • Issue Year: 3/2016
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 9-54
  • Page Count: 46
  • Language: Bosnian