CELEX: 51998PC0217
Language: en
Date: 1998-03-31
Title: Amended proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                       Brussels, 31.03.1998
                                       COM(1998) 217 final
                                      96/0161 (COD)
                   Amended proposal for a
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
on the sale of consumer goods and
             associated guarantees
 (presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 a (2)
                     of the EC-Treaty)
 ---pagebreak---  ---pagebreak---                                  Explanatory memorandum
I. OVERVIEW OF THE PROCEDURE
On 18 June 1996 the Commission of the European Communities adopted the proposal for
a Directive on the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees, which was
transmitted to the European Parliament and Council on 23 August 1996.
It was presented to the Consumer Affairs Council of 25 November 1996.
The Economic and Social Committee delivered its opinion at its 340th plenary session on
27 and 28 November 1996, acting on a proposal from its rapporteur MrEttl and co-
rapporteur Mr Folias.
The proposal for a Directive was discussed at the Consumer Affairs Council of
3 November 1997.
On 10 March 1998 the European Parliament adopted a legislative resolution embodying
Parliament's opinion, acting on a proposal from its rapporteur, Mrs Kuhn. In this
resolution the Parliament invited the Commission to modify its proposal on the basis of
the proposed amendments.
II. COMMENTS ON THE AMENDMENTS
The European Parliament's amendments can be grouped into several categories. Notably
 they concern the proposal's scope, the notion of conformity, the consumer's rights, how
 these rights are exercised in practice, the producer's obligations, commercial guarantees
 and the final provisions.
  1. Scope
 Amendments 2, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 concern the scope of the proposal for a
  Directive. The Commission has fully integrated amendments 11, 14, 15 and 17.
  Amendments 12 and 16 were integrated with a drafting modification. In amendment 12
  the words "excluding buildings" were deleted, because this exclusion is already covered
  by the expression "moveable goods". In the case of amendment 16 the expression
                                           £
 ---pagebreak--- "and/or" is to be avoided. In this definition is enough to write "or", because this is not an
alternative "or", but a cumulative one.
Amendments 2 and 13 were partly integrated. As regards amendment 2, the term
"contracts of hire" was deleted, because to include them would alter the scope of the
Directive, something which cannot be done within a recital. The term "statutory activity"
was rejected. Article 1(2) (c) of the initial proposal corresponds to the traditional
definitions of the existing directives. Hence changes should be restricted to a minimum.
The part of the amendment which aims to include contracts for the exchange of assets in
the scope meets a practical need. On the contrary, it is not necessary to include statutory
activity, given the minor importance of such a modification in practice.
Finally, the Commission rejected amendment 1. However, the Directive's reasoning is
based on two strands, the internal market but also the consumer protection. Taking into
account Parliament's intention to strengthen the consumer policy strand, the Commission
has integrated a new recital into the amended proposal incorporating the wording of
Article 129a.
2. Notion of conformity
Amendments 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 concern the notion of conformity. The
Commission has integrated amendments 19, 20, 21 and 23.
Amendments 18 and 22 were rejected because they are foreign to this notion of
conformity as set out in Article 2. The intention of amendment 18 is already covered by
Article 2(2)(d). Moreover, it is unusual in commercial practice for a producer to present
the consumer with a sample or model. The elements mentioned in amendment 22 are
covered by Article 2(2)(d), which concerns the quality aspects, while Article 2(2)(b)
concerns normal use of the good.
3. The consumer's rights
Amendments 24, 26, 29 and 45 concern the consumer's rights. The Commission has
accepted amendments 29 and 45.
Amendments 24 and 26 could only be partly integrated. As regards amendment 24, it is
preferable not to refer to "actual" delivery. The term delivery on its own gives the
 Member States an adequate margin for transposition, without broaching the general
problem of the transfer of risks, one which is regulated in very different ways and in
copious detail in domestic legislation. The part of amendment 26 deleting the second and
third indents has not been integrated. These restrictions limit the general liability of the
 seller for public statements made by the producer or his representative and are special
 expressions of the general principle of good faith.
 4. Exercising rights in practice
 Amendments 7, 27, 29, 30, 32 and 33 concern the way the consumer's rights are
 exercised in practice. The Commission has integrated amendments 7, 29, 30, 32 and 33.
                                               3
 ---pagebreak--- Amendment 27 has not been integrated for the same reason linked to the principle of
subsidiarity already mentioned in connection with amendment 24. The term delivery on
its own gives the Member States an adequate margin for transposition, without broaching
the general problem of the transfer of risks, one which is regulated in very different ways
and in copious detail in domestic legislation.
Article 4 of the original proposal has been deleted. This proposal was designed to balance
consumers' freedom to choose between their four rights. Since this free choice has been
restricted by the introduction of a hierarchy of consumer rights, together with criteria also
restricting the consumer's choice in regard to his first two rights, the provision of Article
4(1) is no longer justified. Article 4(2) is in contradiction with amendment 33, which is
now the new Article 5, and should therefore be deleted.
 5. The producer's obligations
 Amendments 3, 4, 5, 10 and 25 concern the producer's liability. The Commission
 considers that it is preferable to leave this to the Member States. As mentioned in the
 penultimate recital, an amendment might be envisaged in the light of experience gained
 in implementing the Directive. Moreover, consumer rights and the current system of this
 Directive in general are not adapted to the introduction of this approach.
 Amendments 6 and 48 concern the producer's obligation to indicate a contact address
 from which consumers can obtain information to support their claims. These amendments
 have not been integrated. The system introduced by these amendments might obstruct the
 internal market.
 Finally, amendment 31 concerns the relations between the producer and the seller. The
  second part of this amendment has not been integrated by the Commission. It introduces
  a clause similar to Article 6(1) of the original proposal in favour of the seller, which is
  not justified. The need to protect professional sellers is less important than the need to
  protect the consumer. In the national legal orders relations between professionals are
  normally governed by freedom of contract.
  6. Commercial guarantees
  Amendments 8 and 36 concerning the commercial guarantees were accepted.
   7. Final provisions
   Amendment 9 concerns consumer information on the seller's after-sales service;
   amendment 38 concerns general measures to advise consumers of their rights.
   Amendment 38 has been integrated by the Commission. On the contrary, amendment 9,
   which refers to an amendment by the European Parliament which has not been adopted,
   has not been included because it does not correspond to a provision in the operative part
   of the proposal.
                                              <*
 ---pagebreak--- Amendment 39 mandating the Commission to report on the application of the Directive
has not been accepted. Such a report is not necessary unless it concerns a specific subject,
with a concrete perspective. Moreover, since the transposition provisions have to be
integrated into a very large and complex field of national civil law, the time limit of two
years will be far too short to analyse experiences in applying the Directive.
Amendment 40 introduces this proposal for a Directive into the Annex to the Directive
on injunctions for the protection of consumer's interests. For reasons of legislative
technique the amendment has been accepted with drafting emendations.
Amendment 42 on the clause concerning private international law in the proposal for a
Directive has been integrated.
Amendment 43 concerns remedies; it has not been included. This problem is too complex
and touches on too many questions that lie outside the scope of this proposal for it to be
regulated in this context.
                                               .r
 ---pagebreak--- III.   OVERVIEW
                        COMMISSION'S OPINION IN REGARD TO THE
                        PROPOSED PARLIAMENTARY AMENDMENTS
  Amend-   Provisions concerned           Commission       New numbering
  ment No
   1       First citation                 Refused
  2        Recital 3 a (new)              Accepted         Recital 5
                                          provided an
                                          element is
                                          deleted
   3       Recital 6                      Refused
  4        Recital 6 a (new)              Refused
   5       Recital 7                      Refused
   6       Recital 7 a (new)              Refused
   7       Recital 8                      Accepted         Recital 10
   8       Recital 9                      Accepted         Recital 11
   9       Recital 10 a (new)             Refused
   10      Recital 11                     Refused
   11      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Accepted         Article 1, paragraph 2,
           a)                                              point a)
   12      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Accepted with    Article 1, paragraph 2,
           b)                             drafting         point b)
                                          emendation
   13      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Partly accepted  Article 1, paragraph 2,
           c)                                              point c)
   14      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Accepted         Article 1, paragraph 2,
           d)                                              point d)
   15      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Accepted         Article 1, paragraph 2,
           d) a (new)                                      point e)
   16      Article 1, paragraph 2, point  Accepted with    Article 1, paragraph 2,
           d) a (new)                     drafting         point f)
                                          emendation
   17      Article 1, paragraph 2 a       Accepted         Article 1, paragraph 3
           (new)
   18      Article 2, paragraph 2, point  Refused
           a)
   19      Article 2, paragraph 2 ,       Accepted         Article 2, paragraph 2,
           point c)                                        point c)
   20      Article 2, paragraph 2, point  Accepted         Article 2, paragraph 2,
           d)                                              point d)
   21      Article 2, paragraph 2 a       Accepted         Article 2, paragraph 3
           (new)
   22      Article 2, paragraph 2 b       Refused
           (new)
                                           c
 ---pagebreak---  23          Article 2, paragraph 3         Accepted          Article 2, paragraph 4
 24          Article 3, paragraph 1         Partly accepted   Article 3, paragraph 1
 25          Article 3, paragraph 1 a       Refused
             (new)
 26          Article 3, paragraph 2         First part only   Article 3, paragraph 2, first
                                            accepted          indent.
 27          Article 3, paragraph 3         Refused
 29          Article 3 , paragraph 4,       Accepted          Article 3, paragraph 5
             second subparagraph a
             (new)
 30          Article 3, paragraph 4,        Accepted          Article 3, paragraph 6
             second subparagraph b
             (new)
 31          Article 3, paragraph 5         First part only   Article 3, paragraph 7
                                            accepted
 32          Article 3 a (new)              Accepted          Article 4
 33          Article 3 b (new)              Accepted with     Article 5
                                            amendment
 36          Article 5                      Accepted          Article 6
 38          Article 5 b (new)              Accepted          Article 7
 39          Article 5 c (new)              Refused
 40          Article 5 d (new)              Accepted with     Article 8
                                            drafting
                                            emendation
 42          Article 6, paragraph 2         Accepted          Article 9, paragraph 2
 43          Article 7, paragraph 2         Refused           Article 10
 45          Article 3, paragraph 4         Accepted          Article 3, paragraph 4
 48          Article 3 c (new)              Refused
This table shows that the Commission accepted 26 out of the 40 amendments approved
by the European Parliament, some of which have been accepted either partly or with
drafting emendations, or with modifications to the substance.
                                           >
 ---pagebreak--- Amended proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on
               the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
UNION
Having regard to the Treaty establishing Unchanged
the European Community, and in
particular Article 100a thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the
Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the
 Economic and Social Committee,
Acting in accordance with the procedure
 referred to in Article 189b of the Treaty,
                                              Whereas the Community contributes to the
                                              attainment of a high level of consumer
                                              protection through the measures it adopts in
                                              the framework of completing the internal
                                              market;
 Whereas the internal market comprises an Unchanged
 area without internal frontiers in which the
 free movement of goods, persons, services
 and capital is guaranteed; whereas free
 movement of goods concerns not only
 persons acting in the course of business
 but also private individuals; whereas it
 implies that consumers resident in one
 Member State should be free to purchase
 goods in the territory of another Member
 State on the basis of a minimum set of fair
 rules governing the purchase of consumer
 goods;
 Whereas the laws of the Member States Unchanged
 concerning the sale of consumer goods are
 quite disparate, with the result that
 national consumer goods markets differ
 from one another and that competition
 between sellers may be distorted;
                                            r
 ---pagebreak---  Whereas consumers who are keen to Unchanged
 benefit from the large market by
 purchasing goods in Member States other
 than their State of residence play a
 fundamental role in the completion of the
 internal market by preventing the artificial
 reconstruction of new frontiers and the
 compartmentalization of markets; whereas
 these opportunities have been greatly
 broadened by new communication
 technologies which allow ready access to
 distribution systems in other Member
 States or at international level; whereas in
 the absence of minimum harmonisation of
 the rules governing the purchase of
 consumer goods, the development of the
 sale of goods through the medium of new
 distance communication technologies risks
 being impeded;
                                               Whereas the sale of consumer goods should
                                               cover all types of contract whereby goods
                                               are supplied by the seller to the consumer,
                                               including contracts where goods are
                                               supplied in exchange for another asset in
                                               place of the purchase price and contracts
                                               where payments are made by instalments
                                               and ownership of the goods is not
                                               transferred to the consumer until all
                                               instalments due have been paid;
Whereas the creation of a common Unchanged
minimum corpus of consumer law, valid
no matter where goods • are purchased
within the Community, will further
strengthen consumer confidence and
enable consumers to make the most of the
internal market;
                                              9
 ---pagebreak--- Whereas the main difficulties encountered Unchanged
by consumers and the main source of
disputes with sellers concern the
non-conformity of goods with the contract;
whereas it is therefore appropriate to
approximate national legislation governing
the sale of consumer goods in this respect,
without however impinging on provisions
and principles of national law relating to
contractual and non-contractual liability;
Whereas the goods must, above all, Unchanged
conform        with      the     contractual
specifications; whereas the notion of
conformity with the contract may be
considered as common to the different
national legal traditions; whereas the seller
should be directly liable to the consumer
for the conformity of the goods with the
contract; whereas this is the traditional
solution enshrined in the legal orders of
the Member States; whereas, nevertheless,
the seller should be free to pursue
remedies against his own seller or the
producer when the non-conformity is the
result of ah act of commission or omission
on their part;
Whereas the goods must, above all, Unchanged
conform        with      the     contractual
specifications; whereas the notion of
conformity with the contract may be
considered as common to the different
national legal traditions; whereas the seller
should be directly liable to the consumer
for the conformity of the goods with the
contract; whereas this is the traditional
solution enshrined in the legal orders of
the Member States; whereas, nevertheless,
the seller should be free to pursue
remedies against his own seller or the
producer when the non-conformity is the
 result of an act of commission or omission
on their part;
                                              Jo
 ---pagebreak---  Whereas, in the case of non-conformity of Unchanged
 the product with the contract, consumers
 should be entitled to request that the
 product be repaired or replaced, or to a
 reduction in the price paid by way of
 damages or cancellation of the contract of
 sale; whereas, however, exercise of these
 rights should be limited in time and time
 limits laid down during which these rights
 may be invoked against the seller;
 Whereas, in the interest of a stable Deleted
business environment and good faith in the
 relations between the Contracting Parties,
 it should be incumbent on the consumer to
notify the seller of any non-conformity he
detects within a short period; whereas in
order to allow the parties to reach amicable
settlements without immediately having to
 institute legal proceedings to safeguard
their rights the limitation period should be
 interrupted once the consumer draws
 attention to the lack of conformity of the
goods;
Whereas it is current practice, for certain  Whereas it is current practice, for certain
categories of goods, for sellers and         categories of goods, for sellers and
producers to offer guarantees on their       producers to offer commercial guarantees
products designed to insure consumers        on their products designed to insure
against any defect which becomes             consumers against any defect which
manifest within a certain period; whereas    becomes manifest within a certain period;
this practice can stimulate competition;     whereas this practice can stimulate
whereas, however, these guarantees may       competition; whereas, however, these
be a simple publicity ploy and deceive the   guarantees may be a simple publicity ploy
consumer; whereas to ensure market           and deceive the consumer; whereas to
transparency certain common principles       ensure market transparency certain common
applicable to the guarantees offered by the  principles applicable to the guarantees
economic operators should be laid down;      offered by the economic operators should
                                             be laid down;
                                              //
 ---pagebreak---  Whereas the rights granted to consumers Unchanged
 should not be excludable by common
consent between the parties since
otherwise the legal protection afforded
would be vitiated; whereas consumers
 should always be entitled to rely on the
rights resulting from this Directive or any
other applicable national provision, even if
 they accept the implementation of the
guarantee; whereas consumer protection
resulting from this Directive should not be
reduced on the grounds that the law of a
non-member country is applicable to the
contract;
Whereas legislation and case-law in this Unchanged
area in the various Member States show
that there is growing concern to ensure a
high level of consumer protection; whereas
in the light of these trends and the
experience acquired in implementing this
Directive it may be necessary to envisage
more far-reaching harmonisation, notably
by stipulating the producer's direct liability
for defects for which he is responsible;
Whereas Member States must be allowed Unchanged
to adopt or maintain in force more
stringent provisions, in the field covered
by this Directive, to ensure a yet higher
level of consumer protection,
HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
                  Article 1
            Scope and definitions
 1. The purpose of this Directive is the Unchanged
approximation of the laws, regulations and
 administrative provisions of the Member
 States on the sale of consumer goods and
 associated guarantees in order to ensure a
 uniform minimum level of consumer
 protection in the context of the internal
 market.
                                               /JL
 ---pagebreak--- 2. For the purposes of this Directive,         Unchanged
(a) "Consumer" means any natural person        (a) "Consumer" means any natural person
who, in the contracts covered by this          who, in the contracts covered by this
Directive, is acting for purposes which are    Directive, is acting for purposes which are
not directly related to his trade, business or not directly related to his trade, business or
profession;                                    profession;
(b) "Consumer goods" means any goods, (b) "Consumer goods" means any moveable
excluding buildings, normally intended for goods that are supplied by sellers to
final use or consumption;                      consumers;
(c) "Seller" means any natural or legal (c) "Seller" means any natural or legal
person who sells consumer goods in the person who sells consumer goods in the
course of his trade, business or profession; course of his trade, business or profession
                                               or supplies them in exchange for another
                                               asset in place of the purchase price;
(d) "Guarantee" means any additional           (d) "Commercial guarantee" means any
undertaking given by a seller or producer,     special undertaking given by a seller or
over and above the legal rules governing       producer to put things right if the goods do
the sale of consumer goods, to reimburse       not match the characteristics described in
the price paid, to exchange, repair or         the guarantee statement or the relevant
handle a product in any way, in the case of    advertising.
non-conformity of the product with the
contract.
                                               e) "Manufacturer" means the manufacturers
                                               of the goods, the persons importing the
                                               goods into Community territory, or any
                                               persons purporting to be the manufacturer
                                               by putting their name, trade mark or other
                                               distinguishing mark on the goods.
                                               f) "Manufacturer's representative" means
                                               the natural or legal person who acts as the
                                               official distributor or official service
                                               provider of the manufacturer, with the
                                               exception of independent sellers who
                                               operate exclusively as retailers;
                                               3. Contracts for the delivery of goods to be
                                               manufactured or produced shall be equated
                                               with purchase contracts.
                                               12
 ---pagebreak---                    Article 2
        Conformity with the contract
1. Consumer goods must be in conformity       Unchanged
with the contract of sale.
2. Goods shall be deemed to be in Unchanged
conformity with the contract if, at the
moment of delivery to the consumer:
(a) they comply with the description given Unchanged
by the seller and possess the qualities of
the goods which the seller has held out to
the consumer as a sample or model;
(b) they are fit for the purposes for which Unchanged
goods of the same type are normally used;
(c) they are fit for any particular purpose   (c) they are fit for any particular purpose for
for which the consumer requires them and      which the consumer requires them and
which he had made known to the seller at      which he had made known to the seller at
the time of conclusion of the contract,       the time of conclusion of the contract;
except where the circumstances show that
the buyer did not rely on the seller's
explanations;
(d) their quality and performance are         d) their quality and performance are such as
satisfactory given the nature of the goods    consumers were entitled to expect, partly on
and the price paip! and taking into account   the grounds of the public statements made
the public statements made about them by      about the product in advertising or labelling
the seller, the producer or his               by the seller, the producer or his
representative.                               representative.
                                              3. Goods shall be deemed to be in
                                              conformity with the contract as defined in
                                              this Article if at the time of purchase the
                                              consumer agreed to conclude the contract
                                              although aware of the lack of conformity.
 3. Any lack of conformity resulting from     4. Any lack of conformity resulting from
 incorrect installation of the goods shall be incorrect installation of the goods shall be
 considered to be equivalent to lack of       considered to be equivalent to lack of
 conformity of the goods with the contract,   conformity of the goods with the contract, if
 if the goods were installed by the seller or the goods were installed by the seller or
 under his responsibility.                    under his responsibility. This shall apply
                                              equally if the product is installed by the
                                              consumer and the incorrect installation is
                                              due to a lack of conformity in the written
                                              installation instructions.
                                              /V
 ---pagebreak---                   Article 3
           Obligations of the seller
1. The seller shall be liable to the           1. The seller shall be liable to the consumer
consumer for any lack of conformity            for any lack of conformity which exists
which exists when the goods are delivered      when the goods are delivered to the
to the consumer and which becomes              consumer and which becomes manifest
manifest within a period of two years          within a period of two years.
unless, at the moment of conclusion of the
contract of sale, the consumer knew or
could not be unaware of the lack of
conformity.
2. When the goods are not in conformity Unchanged
with the public statements made by the
producer or his representative, the seller
shall not be liable if:
- the seller shows that he did not know and - the seller shows that he did not know and
could not reasonably know the statement could not know the statement in question,
in question,
- the seller shows that at the time of sale he Unchanged
corrected the statement, or
- the seller shows that the decision to buy Unchanged
the goods could not have been influenced
by the statement.
3. Until proof of the contrary any lack of Unchanged
conformity which becomes manifest
within six months of delivery shall be
presumed to have existed at the time of
delivery, unless this presumption is
incompatible with the nature of the goods
or the nature of the lack of conformity.
                                                 x
 ---pagebreak--- 4. When a lack of conformity is notified to   4. When a lack of conformity is notified to
the seller, pursuant to Article 4, the        the seller, the seller must without
consumer shall be entitled to ask the seller  unreasonable delay offer to repair the goods
either to repair the goods free of charge     free of charge within a reasonable period, or
within a reasonable period, or to replace     to replace the goods. The consumer shall
the goods, when this is possible, or to       have the right to choose either of these
demand an appropriate price reduction or      claims unless, in view of the particular
rescission of the contract. Exercise of the   nature of the case, only one specific claim
right of rescission or replacement of the     appears economically appropriate having
good is limited to one year.                  regard to the seller's interests, and
                                              reasonable to the consumer. The consumer
                                              need not accept an offer to repair the goods
                                              when this results in a reduction in their
                                              value; in such a case he may demand a
                                              replacement.
 Member States may provide that the scope     If neither of these is possible, or if the lack
 of the rights referred to in the first       of conformity is not made good after the
 subparagraph be limited in the case of a      attempted repair, the purchaser shall have
 minor lack of conformity.                     the right to demand an appropriate
                                               reduction of the purchase price or rescission
                                               of the contract.
                                               5. The same provisions shall apply to goods
                                               supplied by way of replacement as to newly
                                               purchased goods.
                                               Where the goods are replaced, the guarantee
                                               period pursuant to paragraph 1 shall
                                               recommence. Where a defect is remedied,
                                               this guarantee period shall recommence in
                                               respect of the remedied defect.
                                               6.The seller shall bear any costs incurred,
                                               such as for transport, travelling, labour or
                                               materials.
  5. When the final seller is liable to the     7. When the final seller is liable to the
  consumer because of a lack of conformity      consumer because of a lack of conformity
  resulting from an act of commission or        resulting from an act of commission or
  omission by the producer, a previous seller   omission by the producer, a previous seller
  in the same chain of contracts or any other   in the same chain of contracts or any other
  intermediary, the final seller shall be       intermediary, the final seller shall be
  entitled to pursue remedies against the       entitled to pursue remedies against the
  responsible person, under the conditions      persons liable, under the conditions laid
  laid down by national law.                    down by national law.
                                                  ic
 ---pagebreak---                                                               Article 4
                                                       Payment by instalments
                                           If the seller and consumer agree to payment
                                           by instalments, such payments may be
                                           suspended until a lack of contractual
                                           conformity is put right.
                                                              Article 5
                                                 Suspension ofperiods of liability
                                           Where the consumer notifies the seller of a
                                           lack of conformity, the period under Article
                                           3(1) shall be suspended until the seller's
                                           obligations are fulfilled. If the consumer has
                                           recourse to an existing extrajudicial
                                           complaints system in the Member States or
                                           takes legal action, the period under Article
                                           3(1) shall likewise be suspended until a
                                           decision is taken under the extrajudicial
                                           complaints system or a judicial decision is
                                           made.
                  Article 4
        Obligations of the consumer        Deleted
1. In order to «benefit from the rights Deleted
referred to in Article 3 (4) the consumer
must notify the seller of any lack of
conformity within a period of one month
from the date on which he detected the
lack of conformity or ought normally to
have detected it.
2. Notifications made pursuant to Deleted
paragraph 1 shall interrupt the limitation
period provided for in Article 3 (4).
                                            a
 ---pagebreak---                   Article 5                                    Article 6
                 Guarantees                             Commercial guarantees
1. Any guarantee offered by a seller or      1. Any guarantee offered shall legally bind
producer shall legally bind the offerer     the offerer under the conditions laid down
under the conditions laid down in the       in the guarantee document and the
guarantee document and the associated       associated advertising and must place the
advertising and must place the beneficiary  beneficiary in a more advantageous position
in a more advantageous position than that   than that resulting from the rules governing
resulting from the rules governing the sale the sale of consumer goods set out in the
of consumer goods set out in the national   national provisions applicable.
provisions applicable.
2. The guarantee must feature in a written  2. The guarantee must feature in a written
document which must be freely available     document which must be freely available
for consultation before purchase and must   for consultation before purchase and must
clearly set out the essential particulars   clearly set out the essential particulars
necessary for making claims under the       necessary for making claims under the
guarantee, notably the duration and         guarantee, notably the duration and
territorial scope of the guarantee, as well territorial scope of the guarantee, the name
as the name and address of the guarantor.   and address of the person to be contacted,
                                            the procedure to be followed in order to
                                            make a claim under the guarantee, as well
                                            as the name and address of the guarantor. It
                                            must also advise consumers that they have
                                            legal rights and that the guarantee does not
                                            affect those rights in any way. A guarantee
                                            only on specific parts of the product must
                                            clearly indicate this limitation, otherwise
                                            the limitation shall be invalid.
                                                               Article 7
                                                        Consumer information
                                            Member States shall provide measures to
                                            inform consumers of the national law
                                            adopted to transpose this Directive and
                                            shall where appropriate ask professional
                                            organisations to inform consumers of their
                                            rights.
                                                               Article 8
                                            In the annex of Directive 98/.../EC of the
                                            European Parliament and the Council on
                                            actions for restraint to protect the interests
                                              if
 ---pagebreak---                                              of consumers* the following is added : '10)
                                             Directive 98/.../EC on the sale of consumer
                                             goods and associated guarantees' (OJ No L
                                             ...of... 1998, p....).
                    Article 6                                   Article 9
       Binding nature of the provisions
 1. Any contractual terms or agreements Unchanged,
concluded with the seller before
notification of the lack of conformity
which waive or restrict the rights resulting
from this Directive shall not be binding on
the consumer.
2. Member States shall take the necessary    2. Member States shall take the necessary
measures to ensure that, irrespective of the measures to ensure that consumers are not
law applicable to the contract, and when      deprived of the protection afforded by this
the contract has a close connection with      Directive if the law of a third country has
the territory of the Member States,          been chosen as the law to be applied to the
consumers are not deprived of the            contract and the contract has a close
protection afforded by this Directive.       connection with the territory of the Member
                                              States.
                     Article 7                                  Article 10
    National law and minimum protection
 1. The rights resulting from this Directive Unchanged
shall be exercised without prejudice to
other rights which the consumer may rely
on under the national rules governing
contractual or non-contractual liability.
2. Member States may adopt or maintain Unchanged
in force more stringent provisions,
compatible with the Treaty, in the field
covered by this Directive, to ensure a
higher level of consumer protection.
                    Article 8                                  Article 11
                  Transposition
1. Member States shall bring into force the Unchanged
laws, regulations and administrative
1
  OJ. Nr. ...of 1998, p. ...
                                             /9
 ---pagebreak--- provisions necessary to comply with this
Directive not later than [two years after its
publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities]. They shall
immediately inform the Commission
thereof.
When Member States adopt these
provisions, these shall contain a reference
to this Directive, or shall be accompanied
by such reference at the time of their
official publication. The procedure for
such reference shall be adopted by
Member States.
2. Member States shall communicate to Unchanged
the Commission the provisions of national
law which they adopt in the field covered
by this Directive.
                  Article 9                            Article 12
              Entry into force
This Directive shall enter into force on the Unchanged
20th day following that of its publication
in the Official Journal of the European
Communities.
                 Article 10                            Article 13
This Directive is addressed to the Member Unchanged
States.
Done at Brussels
For the European Parliament            For the Council
The President                          The President
                                              ocrc
 ---pagebreak---                                                                   ISSN 0254-1475
                                                            COM(98) 217 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                    10 06
                                    Catalogue number : CB-CO-98-22&-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-78-33063-9
Office for Official Publications of the European Communities
L-2985 Luxembourg
                                              :JI