Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and to the Council on the application of Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws (the Regulation on consumer protection cooperation)
Date: 2009-07-02
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: carriage of passengers, consumer protection, public transport, single market, transport accident, transport policy, transport safety

EN 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 2.7.2009 
COM(2009) 336 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
TO THE COUNCIL 

on the application of Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of 
the Council of 27 October 2004 on cooperation between national authorities responsible 
for the enforcement of consumer protection laws (the Regulation on consumer 
protection cooperation) 

EN 

1 

   EN 

 
 
  
TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1. 

1.1. 

1.2. 

2. 

2.1. 

2.2. 

2.3. 

2.4. 

3. 

3.1. 

3.2. 

3.3. 

4. 

4.1. 

4.2. 

5. 

5.1. 

5.2. 

5.3. 

5.4. 

Introduction ................................................................................................................ 3 

Background .................................................................................................................. 3 

Scope and methodology ............................................................................................... 3 

The institutional and enforcement framework: establishing the CPC Network.. 4 

Setting up the CPC Network: designation of authorities ............................................. 4 

Developing the IT-tool: the Consumer Protection Cooperation System ..................... 5 

The CPC Committee .................................................................................................... 5 

Modifications to the Regulation’s annex ..................................................................... 5 

Functioning of the CPC Network - a first assessment ............................................ 6 

General ......................................................................................................................... 6 

The IT-tool ................................................................................................................... 7 

The Network’s operations: main shortcomings ........................................................... 7 

The broader framework for cooperation................................................................. 8 

Common activities and exchange of officials .............................................................. 8 

Enforcement cooperation with third countries............................................................. 9 

Conclusions ................................................................................................................. 9 

General ......................................................................................................................... 9 

Consolidating the CPC-Network.................................................................................. 9 

Improving the Network’s efficiency and effectiveness ............................................. 10 

Strengthening the framework for administrative cooperation ................................... 11 

EN 

2 

   EN 

 
1. 

INTRODUCTION  

1.1. 

Background 

The  Regulation  on  Consumer  Protection  Cooperation1  (the  "CPC  Regulation")  was 
adopted on 27 October 2004 and entered into force on 29 December 2006 following 
two years of intensive preparatory work by the Commission and Member States.  

It  establishes  an  EU-wide  network  of  public  authorities  responsible  for  enforcing 
consumer laws in the Member States (the "CPC Network"), which started operating 
in  December  2006.  Within  its  scope,  the  CPC  Regulation  partially  harmonises  the 
authorities' investigative and enforcement powers and lays down the mechanisms for 
exchanging  relevant 
to  stop 
infringements  in  cross-border  situations2.  It  obliges  Member  States  to  act  upon 
mutual  assistance  requests  addressed  to  them  through  the  CPC  Network  and  to 
ensure that adequate resources are allocated to the network's authorities to meet those 
obligations.  The  Regulation  further  provides  a  broader  framework  for  the 
development  of  administrative  cooperation  initiatives  for  which  the  Commission 
provides funding. 

taking  enforcement  action 

information  and/or 

Given  that  the  Regulation  forms  part  of  the  EEA  Agreement3,  the  same  rules  and 
mechanisms  also  apply  to  the  EFTA  countries  applying  the  EEA  Agreement.  The 
latter are fully integrated into the network’s activities.  

By providing an effective tool for cross-border enforcement and a framework for the 
exchange of best practice and common working, the Regulation seeks ultimately to 
guarantee a consistently high level of consumer protection throughout the EU and to 
reinforce consumers' confidence in the internal market. 

1.2. 

Scope and methodology 

This report complies with the Commission's obligation pursuant to Article 21 of the 
CPC Regulation  to  report  every two years  to  the  European  Parliament  and  Council 
on the application of the said Regulation.  

It covers the first two years of operations of the CPC Network, i.e. 2007 and 2008. 
Where  appropriate,  reference  is  made  to  the  preparatory  work  carried  out  before 
2007 to ensure that the network started operations on time in December 2006. 

The  report  builds  on  the  biennial  reports  prepared  by  the  Member  States4  to  meet 
their  own  reporting  obligations  under  the  Regulation  as  well  as  statistical  data 

1 

2 

3 
4 

Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 October 2004 on 
cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws 
(the Regulation on consumer protection cooperation); OJ L 364, 9.12.2004, p. 1. 
The  network  acts  to  protect  consumers'  collective  interest  and  therefore  does  not  handle  individual 
consumer complaints.  
Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 92/2006 of 7 July 2006. 
The Member States' biennial reports are published on the Europa Site. 

EN 

3 

   EN 

 
                                                 
extracted  from  the  IT-tool  used  by  the  CPC  Network  and  the  practical  experience 
gained through the first EU-sweeps5 coordinated by the Commission.  

2. 

THE  INSTITUTIONAL  AND  ENFORCEMENT  FRAMEWORK:  ESTABLISHING  THE  CPC 
NETWORK 

The  CPC  Regulation  lays  down  in  its  first  two  chapters  the  institutional  and  other 
elements that had to be in place to establish the CPC Network by the end of 2006. 

2.1. 

Setting up the CPC Network: designation of authorities  

To  form  the  CPC  Network,  the  Regulation  requires  Member  States  to  designate 
public  enforcement  authorities  (the  ‘competent  authorities’)  and  a  Single  Liaison 
Office to coordinate the application of the Regulation at national level. They are also 
required  to  ensure  that  these  authorities  have  the  minimum  investigative  and 
enforcement  powers  established  by  the  Regulation  and  are  granted  adequate 
resources to meet their obligations.  

All Member States had to make substantial efforts to adapt their national legislative 
framework  to  meet  the  CPC  Regulation’s  demands,  in  particular  to  set  up  the 
required  structure  to  handle  cross-border  cooperation.  Changes  mostly  concerned 
modifications  to  the  investigative  and  enforcement  powers  conferred  to  national 
consumer authorities in order to comply with the minimum powers requirements set 
out in Article 4 of the Regulation. In some cases however, new authorities had to be 
created  and  the  national  enforcement  system  needed  to  be  modified  to  ensure  that 
public  authorities  were  granted  enforcement  powers  in  accordance  with  the 
Regulation.  

By the end of the reporting period, all Member States had notified to the Commission 
the  list  of  authorities  except  for  two  Member  States  which  still  needed  to  formally 
notify  the  authorities  responsible  for  enforcing  of  the  Unfair  Commercial  Practices 
Directive (UCP Directive)6.  

Pursuant  to  Article  5  of  the  Regulation,  the  list  of  authorities  notified  to  the 
Commission is published in the Official Journal of the European Union7.  

The Commission is closely monitoring the process of notification of authorities and 
has  expressed  concerns  regarding  the  efficiency  of  the  designated  national 
administrative  bodies  in  two  cases,  due  to the  large  number  of  authorities  involved 
and  has  invited  the  Member  States  to  re-consider  the  notified  enforcement 
framework. In both cases, an alternative has been proposed, but not yet implemented, 
due to delays in the national procedures for designating the new authorities.  

5 

6 

7 

EU-sweeps  are  common  market  surveillance  and  enforcement  exercises  carried  out  by  the  Network's 
authorities. 
Directive 2005/29/EC of 11 May 2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 
concerning  unfair  business-to-consumer  commercial  practices  in  the  internal  market,  OJ  L  149, 
11.6.2005, p. 22-39. 
OJ C 40, 23.2.2007 and OJ C 286, 28.11.2007. An update reflecting changes notified since June 2007 is 
currently under preparation. 

EN 

4 

   EN 

 
                                                 
As regards the obligation to provide adequate resources, it is difficult to fully assess 
the  situation  on  the  basis  of  the  information  provided  in  the  national  reports  alone. 
The  data  in  these  reports  seldom  relates  exclusively  to  CPC  activities  and  is  not 
comparable.  It  appears  that  the  tasks  carried  out  within  the  framework  of  the  CPC 
Regulation are generally performed by officials in addition to their regular tasks and 
it  is  difficult  to  identify  the  resources  dedicated  to  the  Network.  Although  all 
authorities have designated at least one contact person for CPC-related matters, there 
seems  to  be  important  differences  in  the  administrative  capacity  of  the  Member 
States. 

2.2. 

Developing the IT-tool: the Consumer Protection Cooperation System 

Article  10  of  the  CPC  Regulation  provides  for  the  development  of  an  IT-tool  that 
authorities  must  use for  exchanges of information.  Developing  and  maintaining  the 
Consumer  Protection  Cooperation  System 
the  Commission’s 
responsibility.  

(CPCS) 

is 

The Commission has closely involved Member States in this project and established 
a group of key users, which provides assistance in the analytical work preceding the 
development of CPCS functionalities and the testing of new releases.  

A first release with a core set of functionalities was operational prior to the launch of 
the  CPC  Network.  Since  then,  several  improvements  have  been  introduced  to 
enhance  the  tool's  user-friendliness,  improve  existing  functionalities  and  develop 
new features.  

2.3. 

The CPC Committee 

Under Article 19 of the Regulation, the Commission is assisted in its implementation 
tasks  by  a  Committee  composed  of  representatives  from  the  Member  States  ("the 
CPC Committee"). This Committee is chaired by the Commission. 

One  of  the  Committee’s  first  tasks  was  to  establish  a  set  of  rules  for  the  CPC 
Network’s  operations,  which  clarify  some  of  the  principles  established  by  the  CPC 
Regulation. They include provisions on time limits, minimum mandatory information 
requirements  for  requests  and  the  different  rights  of  access  to  the  information 
exchanged through the IT-tool. The Commission adopted the implementing rules8 in 
December 2006 in time for the Network’s launch.  

2.4.  Modifications to the Regulation’s annex 

The CPC Regulation contains an annex listing the legal acts to which the cooperation 
mechanisms are applicable. The annex mainly covers EU consumer protection laws 
but also includes some other areas9.  

8 

9 

Commission  Decision  of  22  December  2006  implementing  Regulation  (EC)  No  2006/2004  of  the 
European Parliament and of the Council on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the 
enforcement  of  consumer  protection  laws  as  regards  mutual  assistance  last  amended  by  Commission 
Decision 2008/282/EC of 17 March 2008; OJ L 32, 6.2.2007 and OJ L 89, 1.4.2008. 
Other  areas  include  for  instance:  Regulation  (EC)No  261/2004  on  air  passenger  rights,  OJ  L  46, 
17.2.2004; Directive 2000/31/EC on electronic commerce, OJ L 178, 17.7.2000;  

EN 

5 

   EN 

 
                                                 
The annex was amended during the reporting period to include Directive 2005/29/EC 
on Unfair Commercial Practices. Three proposals to further expand the CPC annex 
are  currently  pending.  These  include  the  ban  on  spam10  and  two  proposals  on 
passenger rights in the areas of maritime and bus transport11. Whilst there are further 
proposals  to  enforce  other  EU  legislation  through  the  CPC  Network,  the 
Commission’s  current  priority  is  to  consolidate  the  Network  before  engaging  in 
further amendments to the annex to the Regulation.  

3. 

FUNCTIONING OF THE CPC NETWORK - A FIRST ASSESSMENT 

3.1. 

General 

Following  a  relatively  slow  start,  Network  activity  quickly  accelerated  to  reach  a 
total  of  719  mutual  assistance  requests12  in  two  years,  of  which  327  requests  were 
created  in  2007  and  392  in  2008.  40%  of  the  information  requests  and  30%  of  the 
enforcement requests created were closed by the authorities during the same period.  

The majority of the  cases are  requests  for information (39% of the total number of 
cases)  and  requests  to  take  enforcement  measures  to  stop  a  confirmed  breach  of 
legislation (37% of the total number of cases). Enforcement requests almost doubled 
in the two years, thus registering the steepest rise. 

In  addition,  the  CPC  Network  has  carried  out  two  joint  market  surveillance  and 
enforcement exercises ("sweeps") which took the form of internet inquiries: one on 
websites  selling  airline  tickets  in  2007  and  one  on  websites  offering  ring  tones  for 
mobile phones in 2008. Enforcement work is still ongoing for the 2008 sweep. 

The  majority  of  infringements  in  the  CPCS  concerned  misleading  advertising 
provisions13  (close  to  a  third  of  the  total  number  of  cases)  and  online  commercial 
practices (internet and mailings). In terms of sectors, the two EU-sweeps contributed 
to  increasing  the  number  of  mutual  assistance  requests  in  the  sectors  where  the 
authorities  carried  out  their  inquiries,  namely  'transport'  and  'communication'.  Most 
striking is the lack or very low number of cases14 concerning certain directives15. 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 
15 

Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the 
processing  of  personal  data  and  the  protection  of  privacy  in  the  electronic  communication  sector: 
Article 13 as regards the protection of consumers (OJ L 2001, 31.07.2002, p.37). 
Proposal  for  a  Regulation  concerning  the  rights  of  passengers  when  travelling  by  sea  and  inland 
waterway  and  amending  Regulation  (EC)  No  2006/2004  on  cooperation  between  national  authorities 
responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws [COM(2008)816]  
Proposal  for  a  Regulation  on  the  rights  of  passengers  in  bus  and  coach  transport  and  amending 
Regulation  (EC)  No  2006/2004  on  cooperation  between  national  authorities  responsible  for  the 
enforcement of consumer protection laws [COM(2008)817]  
Under the CPC cooperation mechanisms authorities can either simply send a warning message ('alert') 
to  other  authorities  concerned,  request  relevant  information  to  support  its  own  investigations  and 
enforcement work, ('request for information') or ask another authority to take appropriate measures to 
stop a practice that is in breach of the law ('enforcement requests')  
These  were  infringements  in  relation  to  the  Council  Directive  84/450/EEC  concerning  misleading 
advertising up until the end of 2007, when the provisions on misleading advertising relating to business- 
to-consumers relations were taken over by the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005/29/EC.  
i.e. fewer than 10 requests in two years, most of which were alerts. 
See Annex 1 for further details. 

EN 

6 

   EN 

 
                                                 
 
The  Network’s  activities  are  already  producing  tangible  results  for  consumers.  To 
give  just  one  example,  the  airline  sweep  has  resulted  in  airlines  progressively 
improving their online booking processes and web pages to meet the requirements of 
EU legislation.  

3.2. 

The IT-tool 

The growing number of CPC cases and Member States' feedback confirm that the IT-
tool  is  generally  meeting  the  authorities’  expectations  and  fulfilling  its  purpose  of 
facilitating exchanges of information.  

Nevertheless,  further  improvements  are  needed.  Member  States  have  raised  in 
particular the following issues: 

• 

• 

• 

The high cost of connecting to the secure TESTA-network used by the CPCS. 
This is in particular an issue for authorities that rarely use the system due to a 
low number of cases in their area of competence; 

Delays in implementing new releases and upgrades; 

The  absence  of  certain  functionalities  in  the  IT-tool,  in  particular  features 
supporting  preparation  and  coordination  of  joint  market  surveillance  and 
enforcement exercises in accordance to Article 9 of the CPC Regulation. 

Another challenge is to ensure that all users are able to use the IT-tool as required, 
i.e. including those who work in areas where there is hardly any CPC related activity. 
Some Member States would like the CPCS to incorporate multi-lingual interfaces. 

3.3. 

The Network’s operations: main shortcomings  

The  experience  gathered  since  the  CPC  Network  was  set  up  also  reveals  some 
shortcomings in the way the authorities work together:  

• 

• 

• 

A significant number of authorities notified are either not connected or do not 
actively use the system, i.e. they are not issuing requests for mutual assistance, 
although  this  is  a  precondition  for  the  effective  functioning  of  the  CPC 
Network. A third of the authorities with password and access are not actively 
using the CPCS16;  

Requests  are  taking  longer  and  longer  to  be  closed:  as  an  illustration  of  this, 
whilst  information  requests  were  being  closed  in  an  average  of  81  days  until 
June  2008,  this  figure  had  increased  to  148  by  the  end  of  2008.  This  can 
partially  be  explained  by  the  greater  complexity  of  cross-border  cases,  but  is 
often  an  indicator  of  non-compliance  with  established  deadlines  or  other 
operating requirements; 

Authorities are using the IT tool in such different ways that this may be having 
a negative impact on their cooperation efforts. The use of alerts, for instance, is 
dividing the Network between those who advocate a widespread transmission 

16 

See relevant section in Annex 1. 

EN 

7 

   EN 

 
                                                 
to all authorities and those who prefer a more selective approach. At the heart 
of  this  discussion are resource  considerations, since authorities need to verify 
whether  the  -infringement  also  affects  their  national  consumers.  Sometimes 
key  information  is  missing,  forcing  authorities  to  seek  clarifications  and/or 
undertake lengthier inquiries; 

• 

The  implementing  rules  need  reviewing  in  the  light  of  practical  experience 
gained in the first two years of Network operations. Rules for the deletion of 
cases (notably alerts) lack consistency and certain data protection aspects ought 
to be clarified. A reality check in respect of certain provisions, such as the time 
limits set for transmission of requests or feedback, is also needed; 

•  Regulation  261/2004  on  air  passenger  rights  which  is  covered  by  the  CPC 
Regulation  provides  for  the  appointment  of  its  own  national  enforcement 
authorities.  These  authorities  are  empowered  to  take  enforcement  measures 
against  both  national  and  non-national  operators  working  on  their  territory.  This 
may have contributed to a limited use of the CPC Network in this sector. 

The Network’s enforcement work has also revealed that issues of a more horizontal 

nature need to be addressed if the Network is to reach its full potential: 

• 

• 

• 

There  is  a  need  to  develop  a  shared  understanding  of  relevant  facts  and  a 
common  interpretation  of  EU  consumer  protection  rules,  for  instance,  a 
definition  of  "collective  consumer  interests".  Different  views  have  also 
emerged as to how the consumer acquis interacts with other pieces of relevant 
EU legislation.  

The  question  of  jurisdiction  and  applicable  law  when  public  authorities  are 
exercising  their  powers  and  the  extent  to  which  the  obligation  to  cooperate 
introduced by the CPC Regulation applies;  

To  maximise  the  impact  of  its  work  and  to  develop  into  a  strong  EU-wide 
dissuasive force, the Network needs to gain a higher profile.  

4. 

THE BROADER FRAMEWORK FOR COOPERATION 

4.1. 

Common activities and exchange of officials  

Beyond  the  procedural  cooperation  provisions,  the  CPC  Regulation  aims  at 
encouraging the exchange of best practice and cooperation through working together 
in  common  projects  or  joint  activities  as  well  as  a  scheme  for  the  exchange  of 
officials  for  which  the  Commission  provides  funding.  The  range  of  activities  is 
therefore very broad: from seminars, training courses, awareness-raising measures to 
projects developing common standards, methodologies and enforcement techniques.  

The Network engaged in several of these projects and exchanges in its first two years 
of operation, but has made limited use of the financial means the Commission made 
available in 2008. The main difficulties raised by the Member States are: 

• 

The activities and scheme are not well known among authorities; 

EN 

8 

   EN 

 
• 

• 

There  is  a  risk  of  dispersion  of  resources  over  too  many  different  projects 
which may reduce the Network’s effectiveness; 

Administrative complexities in the application procedure and grant provisions, 
in particular for the project leader(s). 

4.2. 

Enforcement cooperation with third countries 

Article  18  of  the  Regulation  provides  a  legal  basis  for  entering  into  cooperation 
agreements with enforcement authorities in third countries.  

In  an  increasingly  globalised  world,  the  rationale  for  stronger  cooperation  between 
enforcement  authorities  also  applies  to  relations  with  authorities  outside  the 
European  Union,  especially  with  those  in  countries  that  already  have  strong 
economic  ties  with  the  Member  States.  Contacts  exploring  options  for  cooperation 
with  the  US  authorities  and  Switzerland,  both  identified  in  discussion  with  the 
Member States as priorities, are being stepped up. 

5. 

CONCLUSIONS 

5.1. 

General 

The  CPC  Regulation  has  proved  to  be  a  powerful  enforcement  tool  increasing  the 
level  of  consumer  protection  throughout  the  EU.  It  has  closed  a  gap  by  providing 
national enforcers with a means of effectively putting an end to commercial practices 
harming  consumers  in  cross-border  situations  and  making  it  easier  for  them  to  join 
forces to create a credible enforcement environment in the EU.  

The  Network  is  producing  tangible  results  for  consumers.  Cooperation  between 
Spanish  and  French  authorities  for  instance  led  in  April  2008  to  the  arrest  of  87 
persons and the stamping out of a lottery scam operated from Spain. The EU-sweeps 
are another good example of such cooperation.  

The assessment of the Network’s first two years of operation shows nevertheless that 
it  has  not  yet  reached  its  full  potential  and  reveals  a  series  of  shortcomings.  The 
Commission’s  priority  is  to  work  in  close  partnership  with  the  Member  States  to 
address these issues within the existing legal framework. It reserves, as a measure of 
last  resort,  the  right  to  initiate  infringement  proceedings  against  Member  States 
which  persistently  and  systematically  fail  to  meet  their  obligations  under  the 
Regulation.  

5.2. 

Consolidating the CPC-Network  

The  Commission  will  strive  to  consolidate  the  Network  by  ensuring  that  all 
authorities designated by the Member States actively use the IT-system. The IT-tool 
is  being  further  improved,  particularly  with  regard  to  developing  new  features  and 
increasing its user friendliness. Training capacity was enhanced through the creation 
of a network of national trainers at the end of 2008.  

One key issue in this context will be to ensure that adequate resources are allocated 
to  the  authorities  whilst  taking  due  account  of  the  constraints  resulting  from  the 

EN 

9 

   EN 

 
current  economic  crisis.  Another  will  be  to  identify  and  address  the  reason  why 
authorities are not using the CPC cooperation mechanisms in certain areas.  

5.3. 

Improving the Network’s efficiency and effectiveness 

The  CPC  Network  should  benefit  greater  operational  efficiency  through  a  series  of 
measures which could in due course also include a review of the CPC Regulation: 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The implementing rules will be revised in 2010 to close gaps, review existing 
rules in the light of insight gained over the past two years and to ensure a more 
consistent and quicker handling of mutual assistance requests;  

The exchange of views, experience and best practice through discussions in the 
CPC  Committee  and  in  the  dedicated  workshops  will  be  used  to  develop 
common standards and techniques, manuals and other guidance documents for 
CPC users such as guidelines and FAQ; 

The  adoption  of  an  annual  Enforcement  Action  Plan,  introduced  in  2008, 
should  contribute  to  further  focusing  the  Network’s  activities.  By  using  a 
stronger evidence base, drawing on data collected by the European Consumer 
Centres  Network17  and  the  Consumers  Markets  Scoreboard18,  as  well  as  the 
information  provided  by  national  authorities,  it  will  further  strengthen  and 
concentrate the activities undertaken by the Network. The annual plans should 
eventually  be  embedded  in  an  overall  framework  of  longer-term  priorities 
agreed with Member States;  

The joint exercises, such as the EU-sweeps, should continue to play a key role 
in  the  CPC  Network's  activities  since  they  provide  the  EU  perspective  to  the 
authorities’ market surveillance and enforcement work required by the internal 
market.  As  the  Network  gains  more  experience,  it  would  benefit  from 
examining  new  ways  of  carrying  out  joint  market  surveillance  and/or 
enforcement work.  

The  Network  should  work  towards  common  understanding  of  EU  consumer 
legislation.  The  Commission  has  begun  developing  advisory  guidance  to 
authorities through dedicated discussions in seminars and workshops as well as 
promoting existing tools such as the EU Consumer Law Compendium19 or the 
planned advisory database focused on the UCP Directive.  

The  Commission  will  determine  with  Member  States  the  most  appropriate 
means (e.g. targeted media activities or a CPC website) to give more visibility 
to  the  Network’s  activities.  This  will  send  a  strong  enforcement  message  to 

17 

18 

19 

ECC-Net  is  a  joint  initiative  on  the  part  of  the  Commission  and  the  Member  States,  which  provides 
consumers  with  practical  information,  advice  on  their  rights  and  assistance  with  cross-border 
complaints. 
First Edition of the Consumer Market Scoreboard COM (2008) 31 final and the Second edition of the 
Consumer Market Scoreboard COM (2009) 25/3. 
The  Compendium  links  the  Consumer  acquis,  relevant  ECJ  jurisprudence,  national  transposition 
measures and national case-law. 

EN 

10 

   EN 

 
                                                 
markets.  Activities  raising  consumer  awareness  would  also  contribute  to  this 
goal. .  

5.4. 

Strengthening the framework for administrative cooperation 

The  CPC  Network  should  benefit  from  further  developing  the  potential  for 
cooperation provided by the Regulation, including Commission projects to improve 
the  collection  of  data  on  consumer  issues  and  to  develop  a  common  complaints 
classification.  This  type  of  activity  creates  an  environment  favourable  to  building 
trust  between  authorities  and  to  the  exchange  of  knowledge,  expertise  and  best 
practice,  thereby  enhancing  the  quality  and  effectiveness  of  enforcement  work 
throughout the EU.  

Encouraging  these  joint  actions  through  financial  contributions  therefore  remains  a 
Commission  priority,  in  particular  activities  which  contribute  to  improving  the 
Network’s work in the form of manuals, common standards or methodologies (e.g. 
the manual on how to carry out sweeps developed in 2008 by a group of authorities 
that will be tested in the 2009 exercise). Preparatory meetings for joint actions should 
help  to  overcome  the  administrative  difficulties  encountered  by  authorities  when 
applying for EU funding.  

EN 

11 

   EN 

 
1. 

Total number of mutual assistance requests 

ANNEX I 

Year 

2007 

2008 

TOTAL 

Alerts 

(Art. 7) 

Information 
Requests 

Enforcement 
Requests 

(Art. 6) 

(Art. 8) 

71 

100 

171 

161 

122 

283 

95 

170 

265 

TOTAL 

Member 
States only 

TOTAL 

including 
EEA 
countries 
requests 

317 

384 

701 

327 

392 

719 

2. 

Mutual assistance requests per directive infringed (2007 – 2008) 

Art. 6 
Information

Art. 7  

Art. 8 

Alerts 

Enforcement 

TOTAL 

2007

2008

2007

2008  2007 

2008 

Directive 2005/29/EC on unfair commercial 
practices 

1 

86 

0 

40 

4 

73 

204 

Directive 
advertising 

Directive 
commerce 

84/450/EEC 

on  misleading 

48 

2000/31/EC 

on 

electronic 

3 

0 

9 

34 

0 

35 

0 

117 

7 

20 

15 

48 

102 

Directive  93/13/EC  on  unfair  terms  in 
consumer contracts 

21 

10 

15 

7 

10 

14 

Directive 97/7/EC on distance contracts 

Directive  97/55/EC  amending  Directive 
84/450/EEC 
misleading 
concerning 
advertising  so  as  to  include  comparative 
advertising 

11 

40 

4 

0 

Directive 94/47/EC on timesharing 

27 

Directive 85/577/EC on contracts negotiated 

1 

0 

10 

4 

4 

1 

0 

11 

0 

1 

6 

9 

3 

0 

1 

22 

0 

0 

0 

77 

61 

47 

29 

18 

EN 

12 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
away from business premises  

Directive 
products for human use 

2001/83/EC 

on  medicinal 

2 

Directive  1999/44/EC  on  sale  of  consumer 
goods and associated guarantees 

Regulation  (EC)  N°  261/2004  on  denied 
boarding  and  cancellation  or  long  delay  of 
flights 

Directive 98/6/EC on indication of prices 

Directive  90/314/EC  on  package  travel, 
package holiday and package tour 

Directive 
2002/65/EC 
marketing of consumer financial services 

on 

distance 

Directive 87/102 on consumer credit 

Directive 89/552 on television broadcasting 
activities 

2 

1 

0 

2 

0 

1 

0 

0 

1 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

3 

1 

1 

0 

0 

1 

0 

1 

2 

3 

2 

1 

2 

3 

1 

1 

6 

3 

3 

2 

1 

1 

0 

0 

2 

4 

4 

3 

0 

0 

0 

0 

15 

14 

12 

6 

6 

5 

2 

2 

3. 

Mutual assistance requests per sector (2007 – 2008) 

2007 

2008 

Total

Art 6  Art 8 

Art 7 

Art 6 

Art 8 

Art 7 

Clothing and footwear 

Communication 

Education 

Food 
beverage 

and 

non-alcoholic 

Furnishing, 
equipment 
household maintenance 

and 

household 
routine 

Health 

Housing,  water,  electricity,  gas 
and other fuels  

EN 

1 

0 

1 

1 

0 

6 

0 

0 

2 

0 

1 

1 

11 

0 

13 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

6 

0 

0 

4 

0 

2 

1 

5 

1 

5 

25 

2 

0 

1 

14 

0 

0 

6 

15 

47 

0 

0 

1 

6 

0 

3 

5 

4 

48 

1 

   EN 

 
 
Miscellaneous 
services 

goods 

and 

30 

10 

Outside classification 

Recreation and culture 

Restaurants and hotels 

Transport 

TOTAL 

10 

35 

5 

72 

161 

9 

13 

2 

46 

95 

9 

4 

4 

1 

45 

71 

8 

24 

12 

93 

59 

15 

19 

8 

39 

13 

0 

47 

35 

17 

8 

6 

156 

97 

35 

224 

122 

170 

100 

719 

4. 

Days (average) to close a mutual assistance requests in the CPCS  

June 2008 

October 2008  December 2008 

81 

123 

132 

173 

148 

177 

Information 
requests (art. 6) 

Enforcement  

Requests (art.8) 

EN 

14 

   EN 

 
 
5. 

Mutual assistance requests issued by Member State in 2007 

Information 
Requests 

Art. 6 

42 

4 

1 

12 

1 

1 

0 

0 

0 

19 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

Alerts 

Art. 7 

51 

0 

0 

0 

2 

1 

0 

0 

0 

7 

2 

0 

1 

0 

0 

Enforcement 
Requests 

Art. 8 

TOTAL 

35 

8 

1 

0 

2 

6 

0 

0 

0 

128 

12 

2 

12 

5 

8 

0 

0 

0 

14 

40 

0 

0 

3 

0 

0 

2 

0 

4 

0 

0 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

 Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

EN 

15 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hungary 

68 

Malta 

The Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

United Kingdom 

0 

3 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

5 

3 

0 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

5 

0 

0 

0 

1 

1 

0 

0 

0 

2 

0 

4 

9 

TOTAL 

160 

71 

86 

70 

0 

3 

2 

1 

0 

0 

0 

2 

5 

7 

14 

317 

EN 

16 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6. 

Mutual assistance requests issued by Member State in 2008 

Information 
Requests 

Art. 6 

Alerts 

Art. 7 

Enforcement 
Requests 

Art. 8 

TOTAL 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

 Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

EN 

28 

0 

0 

0 

3 

10 

0 

0 

0 

7 

1 

0 

0 

0 

0 

43 

0 

0 

1 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

17 

48 

2 

0 

13 

7 

2 

0 

0 

8 

9 

0 

0 

10 

0 

0 

119 

2 

0 

14 

12 

12 

0 

0 

8 

16 

2 

0 

11 

0 

0 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hungary 

Malta 

The Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

United Kingdom 

TOTAL 

6 

0 

2 

1 

2 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

15 

43 

118 

4 

0 

4 

1 

0 

1 

0 

0 

0 

20 

10 

12 

100 

20 

0 

7 

1 

7 

0 

0 

0 

3 

11 

8 

10 

30 

0 

13 

3 

9 

1 

0 

0 

3 

31 

33 

65 

166 

384 

EN 

18 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7. 

Mutual assistance requests received by Member State in 2007 

Information 
Requests 

Art. 6 

Alerts 

Art. 7 

Enforcement 
Requests 

Art. 8 

TOTAL 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

 Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

EN 

7 

2 

4 

7 

10 

2 

7 

2 

10 

6 

3 

3 

5 

2 

4 

54 

55 

55 

55 

55 

53 

56 

55 

52 

56 

54 

56 

54 

54 

56 

19 

0 

0 

0 

2 

7 

2 

9 

1 

10 

3 

2 

1 

4 

1 

2 

67 

57 

59 

64 

72 

57 

72 

58 

72 

65 

59 

60 

63 

57 

62 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hungary 

Malta 

The Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

4 

1 

27 

4 

3 

5 

3 

2 

8 

3 

6 

United Kingdom 

TOTAL 

18 

158 

55 

54 

60 

56 

55 

55 

49 

54 

55 

54 

54 

63 

*) 

4 

0 

15 

7 

3 

0 

1 

1 

2 

1 

5 

9 

92 

63 

55 

102 

67 

61 

60 

53 

59 

65 

58 

65 

90 

*) 

*) 

Alerts are sent to several authorities at the same time. A total of the number of alerts 
received by the Member States would therefore count the same alert several times.  

EN 

20 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8. 

Mutual assistance requests received by Member State in 2008 

Information 
Requests 

art. 6 

Alerts 

Art. 7 

Enforcement 
Requests 

art. 8 

TOTAL 

Belgium 

Bulgaria 

Czech Republic 

Denmark 

 Germany 

Estonia 

Ireland 

Greece 

Spain 

France 

Italy 

Cyprus 

Latvia 

Lithuania 

Luxembourg 

EN 

9 

0 

2 

1 

13 

0 

2 

5 

29 

5 

3 

0 

1 

1 

1 

70 

63 

63 

64 

68 

64 

63 

63 

59 

65 

51 

64 

63 

63 

68 

21 

6 

0 

1 

1 

20 

7 

19 

0 

10 

18 

8 

0 

2 

3 

1 

85 

63 

66 

66 

101 

71 

84 

68 

98 

88 

62 

64 

66 

67 

70 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hungary 

Malta 

The Netherlands 

Austria 

Poland 

Portugal 

Romania 

Slovenia 

Slovakia 

Finland 

Sweden 

United Kingdom 

TOTAL 

*) 

3 

1 

24 

3 

1 

1 

0 

1 

4 

1 

2 

8 

121 

55 

54 

59 

66 

63 

63 

53 

64 

63 

74 

72 

65 

*) 

3 

0 

37 

3 

1 

4 

0 

2 

5 

0 

5 

11 

167 

61 

55 

120 

72 

65 

68 

53 

67 

72 

75 

79 

84 

*) 

Alerts are sent to several authorities at the same time. A total of the number of alerts 
received by the Member States would therefore count the same alert several times.  

EN 

22 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
9. 

Connections to the CPCS and usage check 

Number of designated 
which 
authorities 
for 
never 
access 

asked 

Number 
of 
authorities  which  did 
the  CPCS 
not  use 
despite having access 

Total number of 
designated 
authorities with 
CPCS access 

November 2008 

February 2009 

12 

n/a 

127 

78 

252 

252 

EN 

23 

   EN