COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union concerning the position of the Council on the adoption of a Directive amending Directive 2013/11/EU on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes, as well as Directives (EU) 2015/2302, (EU) 2019/2161 and (EU) 2020/1828, following the discontinuation of the European Online Dispute Resolution Platform
Date: 2025-11-26
Institutions: Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers, European Commission
Subjects: alternative dispute resolution, consumer protection, digital content, digital single market, electronic commerce, goods and services, provision of services, third country, trade dispute

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   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 26.11.2025  COM(2025) 742 final 2023/0376 (COD)  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT  pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union  concerning the position of the Council on the adoption of a Directive amending Directive 2013/11/EU on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes, as well as Directives (EU) 2015/2302, (EU) 2019/2161 and (EU) 2020/1828, following the discontinuation of the European Online Dispute Resolution Platform  
 
2023/0376 (COD) 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 
TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

pursuant to Article 294(6) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union 

concerning the 

position of the Council on the adoption of a Directive amending Directive 2013/11/EU on 
alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes, as well as Directives (EU) 
2015/2302, (EU) 2019/2161 and (EU) 2020/1828, following the discontinuation of the 
European Online Dispute Resolution Platform 

1. 

BACKGROUND 

Date of publication of the proposal: 

(COM(2023) 649 final – 2023/376 COD) 

17 October 2023 

Date of the opinion of the European Economic and Social 
Committee: 

14 February 2024 

Date of the first reading position of the European Parliament: 

13 March 2024 

Date of the position of the Council 

17 November 2025 

2. 

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROPOSAL FROM THE COMMISSION 

The aim of this proposal is: 

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

to expand the material and the geographical scope of the Directive; 

to  incentivise  traders  to  participate  in  alternative  dispute  resolution  (ADR)  by 
introducing  an  obligation  for  traders  to  reply  to  ADR  enquiries  within  a  specific 
timeframe to indicate whether or not they intend to participate; 

to better assist consumers in cross-border disputes through the introduction of ADR 
contact points; 

to alleviate the administrative burden on the actors involved in the ADR process; 

to  have  a  digital  information  tool  on  redress  mechanisms  developed  for  consumers 
by the Commission. 

3. 

COMMENTS ON THE POSITION OF THE COUNCIL 

The Council’s position at first reading comprises the following key aspects on which the co-
legislators were able to find agreement: 

(a) 

extending  the  material  scope  to  include  contractual  disputes  related  to  the  pre-
contractual  stage,  contracts  for  the  provision  of  digital  content  and  digital  services, 
and contracts for which the consumer does not pay a price. The proposed extension 

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(b) 

(c) 

(d) 

(e) 

(f) 

(g) 

(h) 

(i) 

(j) 

of  the  scope  to  include  disputes  stemming  from  non-contractual  obligations  was 
deleted; 

extending  the  geographical  scope  to  include  third-country  traders  subject  to  (i)  a 
joint  request  for  an  ADR  procedure  from  the  trader  and  the  consumer,  and  (ii)  the 
trader’s activity being directed towards one or more Member States. Member States 
may  set  additional  conditions  for  the  participation  of  third  country  traders  in  ADR 
procedures; 

introducing new definitions and adapting existing ones to reflect the modified scope 
of Directive 2013/11/EU; 

introducing  a  duty  for  traders  to  reply  to  requests  from  ADR  entities  within  a 
period of 20 working days to indicate whether or not they agree to participate in an 
ADR  process.  In  the  case  of  complex  disputes  or  exceptional  circumstances  this 
period may be extended to 30 working days. Upon expiry of the deadline, if a trader 
has  not  replied,  the  ADR  entity  may  take  this  to  mean  the  trader  has  refused  to 
participate  in  the  procedure  and  may  close  the  case  and  inform  the  consumer 
accordingly.  Further  consequences  of  traders  failing  to  reply  will  be  laid  down  in 
national legislation. Exemptions from the duty to reply are applicable where national 
legislation  makes  the  trader’s  participation  mandatory,  the  outcomes  of  ADR 
procedures  can  be  reached  without  the  trader’s  consent  to  participate,  or  the  trader 
has already committed to participate in ADR procedures; 

introducing  an  obligation  for  Member  States  to  put  in  place  measures  to  promote 
the participation of traders and consumers in ADR procedures. When designing 
and  implementing  these  measures,  Member  States  are  expected  to  pay  particular 
attention  to  sectors  with  low  levels  of  trader  participation  and  high  numbers  of 
consumer complaints, such as transport  and tourism, in particular in the field of air 
introduce  mandatory 
passenger 
participation in those sectors; 

rights.  Alternatively,  Member  States  may 

incorporating  a  new  provision  whereby  consumers  must  be  informed  in  advance  if 
automated means are used in ADR decision-making processes; 

including unfair commercial practices and terms among the practices about which 
ADR entities and the competent authorities must mutually exchange information in 
the event of multiple consumer complaints. In addition, ADR entities are obliged to 
make the competent authorities’ contact information publicly available; 

simplifying  certain  reporting  requirements.  Specifically,  ADR  entities  no  longer 
need to publish their activity reports every year but every two years. Moreover, they 
are  no  longer  required  to  report  on  their  cooperation  within  ADR  networks. 
Nevertheless,  it  was  agreed  to  maintain  the  reporting  requirements  regarding  i)  the 
effectiveness of ADR networks, ii) the training provided to staff and iii) how ADR 
entities intend to improve their performance; 

including  an  obligation  for  the  competent  authorities  to  carry  out  the  necessary 
checks  to  monitor  compliance  with  this  Directive.  A  recital  clarifies  that  ADR 
entities, competent  authorities and ADR contact  points  must  have adequate human, 
material  and  financial  resources  and  that  Member  States  may  determine  the 
appropriate forms of funding for this purpose; 

setting  a  transposition  deadline  for the  Directive  of 26 months  following  its  entry 
into  force  and  an  application  deadline  six months  after,  i.e.  32 months  following 
entry into force of the Directive. 

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The  Commission  welcomed  the  constructive  atmosphere  throughout  the  negotiations.  As  a 
result  of  the  review  of  Directive 2013/11/EU,  EU  consumers  will  have  access  to  an  out-of-
court dispute resolution process which is fit for the digital age.  The Council’s position fully 
reflects the political agreement reached between the European Parliament and the Council on 
26 June 2025.  For this  reason, the  Commission  can accept  the aspects  set  out  above  for the 
purposes of reaching a final agreement and can endorse the Council’s position. 

4. 

CONCLUSION 

The Commission accepts the position taken by the Council. 

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