REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the functioning of the European Online Dispute Resolution platform established under Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 on online dispute resolution for consumer disputes
Date: 2017-12-13
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, European Commission
Subjects: Internet site, alternative dispute resolution, application of EU law, consumer protection, electronic commerce, provision of services, purchase, single market, trade dispute

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 13.12.2017  COM(2017) 744 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL on the functioning of the European Online Dispute Resolution platform established  under Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 on online dispute resolution for consumer disputes  
 
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

on the functioning of the European Online Dispute Resolution platform established  
under Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 on online dispute resolution for consumer disputes 

Introduction 

Facilitating  cross-border  e-commerce,  in  particular  for  SMEs,  and  strengthening  consumers' 
trust  when  shopping  online  is  an  important  part  of  the  Commission's  Digital  Single  Market 
(DSM)  strategy,  one  of  the  European  Commission's  top  ten  political  priorities.  Promoting 
access  to  efficient  and  effective  redress  mechanisms  through  alternative  dispute  resolution 
procedures  has  been  identified  as  a  way  to  achieve  this  goal.  The  2017  edition  of  the 
Consumer  Conditions  Scoreboard1  shows  that  more  and  more  EU  consumers  are  shopping 
online  and  that  their  trust  in  e-commerce  has  increased.  It  is  the  first  time  consumers  have 
expressed  a  strong  increase  in  trust  in  buying  goods  and  services  from  other  EU  countries. 
This is a significant development since a lack of trust in cross-border e-commerce has, for a 
number of years, been the main barrier to tapping the full potential of the DSM. 

To enable easily accessible and efficient out-of-court redress for consumer disputes, including 
in  disputes  arising  from  cross-border  e-commerce,  a  comprehensive  legal  framework  on 
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)2 and Online Dispute Resolution (ODR)3 was adopted at 
EU  level  in  2013  and  has  been  in  place  since  2016.  The  two  legislative  instruments 
establishing that framework are interlinked and complementary. Based on consumers' access 
to  a  comprehensive  landscape  of  quality  ADR  bodies,  the  ODR  platform  contributes  to 
strengthening consumers’ and traders’ confidence in shopping and trading online both in their 
country  and  abroad:  consumers  can  solve  disputes  with  traders  that  arise  from  online 
transactions  in  a  simple,  fast  and  inexpensive  way,  while  traders  avoid  costly  litigation 
procedures  and  maintain  good  customer  relations.  The  Online  Dispute  Resolution  platform 
(hereinafter  the  "ODR  platform")  is  an  online  platform  that  channels  complaints  to  ADR 
bodies.  Those  ADR  bodies  have  been  notified  to  the  Commission  by  national  authorities 
following a positive assessment of their compliance with the quality requirements mandated 
in  the  ADR/ODR  legal  framework.  They  can  therefore  be  trusted  by  both  consumers  and 
traders. 

The present Communication complies with the obligation laid down in Article 21 of the ODR 
Regulation to report on the functioning of the ODR platform. It details the steps taken for the 
establishment  of  the  ODR  platform  and  provides  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council 
with  an  overview  of  its  first  year  of  operation.  It  also  describes  the  actions  planned  by  the 
Commission to ensure the platform's continued proper functioning and to further enhance its 
contribution to the development of the Digital Single Market. 

1 Consumers conditions scoreboard – Edition 2017. 
2  Directive  2013/11/EU  of  the  European  parliament  and  of  the  Council  on  Alternative  Dispute  Resolution  for 
consumers, OJ L 165, 18.6.2013, p. 63–79. 
3 Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 of the European parliament and of the Council on online dispute resolution for 
consumers,  OJ L 165, 18.6.2013, p. 1–12. 

1 

 
 
                                                            
The ODR platform 

The ODR platform was launched in January 2016 and opened to the public on 15 February 
2016. The platform's aim is to facilitate the online resolution of disputes between consumers 
and traders over online transactions. The platform has the following key characteristics: 

  Consumers  and  traders  can  choose  any  of  the  EU  official  languages  for  their 
interaction with the platform (e.g. submitting their complaints, receiving notifications). 
An automatic translation tool is available for free text communication. 

  The platform identities which notified ADR bodies are competent to handle the case 

and refers the dispute the ADR body on which the parties agree. 

  ADR  bodies  can  use  the  platform's  case  management  system  to  conduct  the  ADR 

procedure entirely online. 

  The  parties  can  request  that  the  outcome  of  the  ADR  procedure  is  translated  by  a 

professional translator. 

  Clear deadlines are built into the platform to ensure a fast process. 

The process on the ODR platform   

Consumer 
complains 

Complaint goes to the trader 

Trader proposes 
ADR Body 

or 

Trader rejects complaint 
or does not respond via 
the platform 
ADR Body 

Proposal 
goes to 
consumer 

An ADR body is agreed within 30 days  
or the complaint is automatically closed 

automatically closed 
No agreement is reached on the 
choice of ADR body 

or 

Consumer accepts 
proposal 

Proposal 
goes to 
consumer 

ADR Body resolves dispute 
ADR Process should take maximum 90 days 

From complaint to resolution  
within 120 days 

The ODR platform is fully functional and has been developed as an interactive web-interface 
offering a single point of entry to consumers and traders seeking to resolve disputes arising 
from  online  transactions  without  going  to  court.  More  specifically,  the  platform's  functions 
have  been  designed  and  developed  in  compliance  with  Article  5  paragraph  4  of  the  ODR 
Regulation,  to  allow  the  parties  to  conduct  the  dispute  resolution  procedure  online  through 
electronic case management. The ODR platform allows consumers to initiate a procedure by 
submitting a complaint electronically to a trader, allows the trader to identify the competent 
ADR  entity  and,  in  case  of  agreement  of  both  parties  on  the  ADR  body,  transmits  the 
complaint to that body. In addition, it provides all relevant actors with the free translation of 
information necessary for the resolution of the dispute. 

2 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In building the ODR platform, the Commission was supported by an expert group composed 
of ODR experts designated by the Member States. Furthermore, the Commission conducted 
three  comprehensive  testing  exercises  where  120  ODR  experts  designated  by  the  Member 
States, consumer organisations, trader associations and the European Disability Forum tested 
the  platform's  various  interfaces  on  the  basis  of  real-life  scenarios.  The  feedback  received 
from  those  exercises  directly  fed  into  the  platform's  development  and  was  important  in 
ensuring its user-friendliness and accessibility. The platform's workflow is  prescribed in the 
ODR Regulation; the Commission therefore designed the platform's various interfaces in full 
respect of those legal requirements. 

The legal framework for consumer ADR and ODR 

The ODR Regulation builds on the Directive on consumer ADR and thus the legal framework 
for  the  operation  of  the  platform  includes  both  pieces  of  legislation.  The  ADR  Directive 
ensures that EU consumers can turn to certified ADR bodies when they have a problem with a 
trader  over  the  purchase  of  a  product  or  a  service  in  virtually  all  retail  sectors  both 
domestically  and  across  borders  irrespective  of  whether  the  purchase  was  made  online  or 
offline. The certified ADR bodies are required to respect binding quality requirements such as 
impartiality,  fairness,  transparency  and  effectiveness.  Member  States  need  to  establish 
national  lists  of  certified  ADR  bodies  and  communicate  those  lists  to  the  Commission.  The 
details of the ADR bodies (name, sectoral coverage and information on fees) are translated in 
all the official languages of the Union and are subsequently electronically registered and made 
publically available on the ODR platform. 

The ADR/ODR legal framework applies to consumer disputes involving traders established in 
the  EU  and  in  EEA  countries.  The  ODR  platform  processes  disputes  that  stem  from  online 
sales  or  online  service  contracts  between  consumers  and  traders  resident/established  in  the 
Union and EEA countries.4 The platform does not address disputes between consumers (C2C) 
or  between  traders  (B2B),  nor  does  it  provide  a  technical  framework  for  direct  negotiation 
between  the  parties,  settlement  attempts  made  by  a  judge  in  the  course  of  judicial 
proceedings,  or  disputes  concerning  health  services  or  public  providers  of  further  or  higher 
education. 

The  ODR  Regulation  provides  that  Member  States  should  designate  ODR  contact  points  to 
provide one-to-one support to users of the ODR platform when necessary. Online traders are 
required to provide a link to the ODR platform and state their e-mail address, on which they 
can be reached via the platform, on their website. 

Implementation of the ADR Directive 

It is important to stress that Member States' compliance with the legal framework governing 
ADR/ODR  is  an  essential  condition  for  the  functioning  and  effective  operation  of  the  ODR 
platform. To date, all Member States with the exception of Spain5 have communicated to the 

4 The platform deals with complaints by consumers against traders in all Member States and also with disputes 
submitted by traders against consumers in such contracts if the legislation of the Member State of the consumer 
allows  for  such  disputes  to  be  solved.  Belgium,  Poland,  Luxembourg  and  Germany  allow  for  business  to 
consumer complaints. 
5 At the moment this report was finalised the relevant Spanish national transposition legislation was in its last 
stages of the legislative procedure. 

3 

 
 
                                                            
Commission  that  they  have  fully  implemented  the  Directive  on  consumer  ADR.  To  date  a 
significant  number  of  ADR  bodies  have  been  registered  on  the  platform  showing  that  the 
system is fully operational: currently more than 300 ADR bodies from 26 Member States6 can 
be  accessed  through  the  platform.  Moreover,  all  28  Member  States  have  designated  their 
national ODR contact points to assist the users of the platform and inform consumers about 
their options to obtain redress. On 1 July 2017 the ADR/ODR legislation became applicable 
to  the  EEA/EFTA  States  (Norway,  Iceland  and  Lichtenstein).  In  order  to  facilitate  the 
submission of complaints from these States the interfaces of the platform are also available in 
the  Norwegian  and  Icelandic  languages.  ADR  bodies  from  those  states  can  also  be 
electronically  registered  with  the  ODR  platform.  The  ADR  bodies  registered  on  the  ODR 
platform have been assessed (and are being monitored) by the national competent authorities 
for  their  compliance  with  the  quality  requirements  established  by  the  ADR  Directive.  It  is 
important  to  stress  that  while  there  is  no  obligation  for  traders  to  use  ADR  in  respect  of 
individual consumer complaints, online traders are under an obligation to include a link to the 
ODR platform on their website. In order to check traders' compliance with this obligation the 
Commission  has  conducted  a  scraping  of  more  than  20,000  web  shops  across  the  EU.  The 
analysis of traders' compliance with the obligation to provide an easily accessible link to the 
platform and their email address on their website shows encouraging results that can however 
be significantly improved. The results showed a compliance rate of 30% where the ODR link 
has been found on the web shops of e-commerce traders' established in the EU. The presence 
of  the  ODR  link  differs  across  countries,  sectors  and  differently-sized  web  shops.    The 
Commission will liaise with Member States to support them in the coming months to enhance 
traders' compliance in this regard. 

Complaints lodged on the ODR platform in its first year of implementation 

The Commission conducted an analysis of a complete data set related to all complaints lodged 
on the platform between 15 February 2016 and 15 February 2017. The analysis focuses solely 
on  complaints  that  are  generated  within  the  platform's  workflow  and  does  not  take  into 
consideration  complaints  received  by  ADR  entities  directly,  i.e.  outside  the  platform.  The 
ODR platform is part of a wider framework aiming to help the parties access qualified bodies 
for alternative dispute resolution. 

During the 12 months covered by this report some 1.9 million people visited the platform. On 
average  the  website  received  over  160,000  unique  visitors  per  month,  and  more  than  2,000 
complaints  were  submitted  per  month  on  average.7  These  data  show  that  the  platform  has 
reached  a  considerable  level  of  coverage  and  uptake;  it  also  illustrates  the  significant 
awareness  and  interest  the  platform  enjoys  with  EU  consumers  and  business.  More  than 
24,000 complaints were submitted on the platform in its first year of operation. Table 1 below 
shows the trend of complaints submitted per month which indicates a regular increase with a 
peak  in  December  2016  and  January  2017  which  corresponds  to  a  seasonal  peak  in  online 
shopping. 

6 Dispute resolution bodies are currently not available in Romania and Spain. 
7  Current  statistics  show  a  steady  increase  in  unique  visitors  from  February  2017  –  August  2017  to  over  
180,000 per month, with over 2,300 complaints being filled per month. 

4 

 
 
                                                            
Complaints submitted per month 

2933 

2921 

2458 

1993 

1779  1873 

2362 

2085 

1625 

1597 

1787 

1398 

744 

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

1

2

2016

2017

3500

3000

2500

2000

1500

1000

500

0

Table 1 

The geographical distribution of complaints in the top 10 Member States is presented in table 
2 below. 

Number of complaints made in top 10 countries 

i

l

s
t
n
a
p
m
o
C
f
o
r
e
b
m
u
N

8000

7000

6000

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0

Country of theconsumer

Country of the trader

Table 2 

5 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Overview of disputes in the ODR platform during the first year of operation: 

  The  most  complained  about  sectors  were  consumer  clothing  and  footwear  (11.5%), 
airline  tickets  (8.5%),  and  information  and  communication  technology  goods  (8%) 
which also represent the main e-commerce sectors in EU8. 

  The  main  reasons  why  consumers  complained  were  linked  to  problems  with  the 
delivery  of  the  goods  (21%),  followed  by  non-conformity  with  the  order  (15%)  and 
problems with defective goods (12%). 

  1/3 of complaints related to a cross-border issue. 

  Germany  and  UK,  where  the  proportion  of  e-shoppers  is  the  highest  in  EU9,  are  the 
two countries  where  most complaints have  been lodged  and also where  most  traders 
concerned are located. 

Table 3 

A  detailed  analysis  of  the  complaint  life-cycle  on  the  platform,  as  shown  in  table  4  below, 
reveals  that  in  a  considerable  number  of  cases  (85%)  complaints  were  automatically  closed 
within 30 calendar days after submission (i.e. deadline for the consumer and trader to agree on 
a  competent  ADR  body).  In  order  to  understand  the  significance  of  these  data  and  evaluate 
traders'  interest  in  ADR  procedures,  the  Commission  carried  out  a  specific  survey  to  get 
feedback  from  consumers  whose  case  was  automatically  closed.  The  survey  revealed  that, 
although a large number of traders did not follow through using the ODR platform, 40% of 
consumers  who  submitted  a  complaint  on  the  ODR  platform  that  was  automatically  closed 
after  30  days  had  been  contacted  directly  by  the  trader  to  solve  the  problem  without  any 
further progression of the complaint on the platform. Hence, even in such cases it has to be 
recognised  that  the  ODR  platform  helps  consumers  and  traders  to  solve  their  disputes,  as 
consumers'  mere  recourse  to  the  ODR  platform  has  a  preventive  effect  on  traders  that  are 
more inclined to settle the dispute rapidly without taking the complaint to a dispute resolution 
body through the ODR platform workflow. 

There  are also  technical  reasons  for  the  traders'  lack  of  responsiveness  on  the  platform.  For 
example, when a complaint is submitted against a trader for the first time and the trader is not 
yet  registered  on  the  platform,  the  automatic  notification  may  reach  an  incorrect  email 
address. Other reasons could be that the origin of the notification message is unclear to traders 
or  that  the  notification  ends  in  the  spam  folder  of  the  trader's  mailbox  and  remains  unread. 
The Commission developed technical measures to mitigate these technical shortcomings and 
subsequent negative effects after the completion of the statistical analysis in July 2017. 

9% of complaints were not automatically closed by the system but were refused by the trader. 
In  2/3  of  these  cases,  however,  traders  indicated  that  they  made  direct  contact  with  the 
consumer and solved the issue or were planning to do so (around 6% of the overall submitted 
complaints). 

For 4% of the submitted complaints the data show that both parties have used the possibility 
to  withdraw  from  the  procedure  before  their  agreement  to  use  a  specific  ADR  body.  

8 Source: Eurostat statistics - Online purchases, EU28, 2016. 
9 Source: Eurostat statistics - Internet use and online purchases, 2016. 

6 

 
 
                                                            
Finally only 2% of complaints were submitted to a specific ADR body. However in around 
half of these cases the ADR bodies refused to deal with the case on procedural grounds such 
as  lack  of  competence  or  the  consumer's  failure  to  attempt  to  contact  the  trader  first. 
Furthermore,  either  consumers  or  traders  in  some  instances  withdrew  from  the  procedure 
before  it  was  completed.  This  explains  why  the  ADR  procedure  reached  a  final  outcome  in 
less  than  1%  of  cases.  Nevertheless,  in  2/3  of  those  cases  the  final  outcome  was  reached 
within the 90-day deadline. 

The complaints life-cycle 

Complaints 
withdrawn by 
either party 
before reaching 
ADR  
4% 

Complaints 
reaching ADR 
2% 

Complaints 
refused by trader  
9% 

Submitted 
complaints 
automatically 
closed after 30 
day legal deadline  
85% 

Table 4 

Performance of the ODR platform 

The  significant  number  of  complaints  and  the  uptake  of  the  ODR  platform  in  all  Member 
States are very positive elements which show that the ODR platform was well received and is 
considered  as  a  useful  tool  by  consumers.  A  user  feedback  survey  conducted  in  July  and 
August 2017 indicated that 71% of visitors to the ODR platform found it useful. 

Furthermore,  available  information  reveals  that  44%  of  submitted  cases  were  settled 
bilaterally outside the platform10. 

ODR platform achievements: 

  Very high level of consumer visits: the platform received an average of over 160,000 

unique visitors per month. 

  Large number of complaints submitted: over 2000 complaints per month on average. 

  About  44%  of  the  overall  number  of  complaints  was  solved  in  successful  bilateral 

negotiation between traders and consumers. 

10 40% of the complaints automatically closed after 30 days (85% of the total number of complaints) resulted in 
bilateral settlement. This is 34% of the overall complaints. This 34% figure may be added to the 6% of traders 
that refused ADR and settled directly with the consumer and the 4% of complaints where the parties withdrew 
from ADR presumably because they had reached a settlement. 

7 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                            
Conclusions 

Overall, the platform's  structural functionality and its impressive reach among consumers in 
its  first  year  of  operation  is  very  positive.  The  platform's  main  functions  work  properly,  it 
operates as an interactive multilingual web-based IT tool, it provides a user-friendly means to 
submit  complaints  online,  it  contains  a  multilingual  register  of  ADR  entities,  and  it  offers 
information  on  consumer  redress.  However,  it  is  mainly  due  to  its  incentive  effects  that  it 
contributes to solving cases outside of the platform. 

In the coming months, it will be important to improve traders' engagement so as to ensure that 
the complaints that cannot be settled bilaterally (i.e. outside of the platform or through traders' 
internal  complaint  systems)  are  effectively  channelled  through  the  ODR  platform  and  dealt 
with  by  a  competent  ADR  body.  To  this  end  the  Commission  will  work  with  national 
authorities to improve compliance by traders with their obligation to link to the ODR platform 
on  their  website.  The  Commission  has  also  started  to  take  action  to  encourage  traders  to 
cooperate  more  on  the  platform  including  by  giving  feedback  when  they  solve  the  issues 
outside  the  platform,  and  technical  measures  are  being  rolled  out  with  the  objective  to 
improve the platform's interface and messaging and to better communicate the various ways 
of handling complaints that are available to consumers. 

Communication  activities  to  further  promote  the  ODR  platform  amongst  consumers  and 
traders will be launched in 2017. In addition, the Commission organised two high-level events 
with traders active in the top online retail sectors, the clothing and footwear11 and the airlines 
sector12, to discuss the potential that ADR and ODR hold for increasing consumer confidence 
in online trading. 

Finally,  it  is  worth  mentioning  that  the  ODR  platform  is  also  supported  by  the  Connecting 
(CEF  Telecoms)  established  by  Regulation 
Europe  Facility 
1316/2013/EU13. The projects supported aim at maintaining the ODR platform and improving 
its  interoperability  with  other  systems  with  a  view  to  facilitate  communication  between 
traders' complaints systems and the ODR platform. 

instrument 

financial 

11 A round-table discussion with representatives of e-retailers in the clothing and footwear sector is scheduled to 
take place in Brussels in December 2017. The event will discuss important policy developments in online trading 
and  support  traders'  effort  and  commitment  to  responsible  trading  and  the  respect  of  consumer  rights  in  the 
digital marketplace. 
12  In  cooperation  with  the  German  Conciliation  Body  for  Public  Transport  -  SÖP  (Schlichtungsstelle  für  den 
öffentlichen Personenverkehr e.V) the Commission hosted a special event in Berlin on 10 November 2017. The 
event  marked  the  launch  of  "TRAVEL-NET",  a  network  of  ADR  entities  from  various  Member  States  that 
handle disputes in the public transport and travel sector. 
13 OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 129–171. 

8