On 25 December 2014, the Act on Consumer Rights
of 30 May 2014 will become effective, incorporating
into Polish law Directive No. 2011/83/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council on
consumer rights. The Act on Consumer Rights
significantly expands the rights of consumers and by
the same token also affects the corresponding rights
of entrepreneurs.
Above all, it must be noted that the new consumer
rights legislation broadens significantly the scope of
the information disclosure obligations shouldered by
the entrepreneur concluding a contract with the
consumer. Significantly, under the new regime, the
entrepreneur is in principle obligated to disclose to
the consumer a range of information that is material
for his legal standing, regardless of whether the
goods are being sold on the business premises, away
from business premises, or remotely; the said
obligation does not apply to minor everyday
contracts. It must be also noted that the entrepreneur
will be also required to obtain the consumer’s
express consent to any payment over and above the
principal obligations arising under the concluded
contract.
There are also significant changes to the rights of
consumers in the event the contract is concluded
remotely or away from business premises. In
particular, the period of time in which the consumer
is entitled to withdraw for convenience from the
contract concluded in the above circumstances has
been extended to 14 days. Notably, also the period in
which the consumer will be able to exercise his right
to withdraw from the contract concluded in the
above circumstances if he is not duly advised of his
right to do so has also been extended. Under the
previous regime, if the consumer was not informed
of his right to withdraw from the agreement, he
could exercise his right within a period of three
months after the execution date. Under the new
legislation, the period in which the consumer,
unadvised of his right to withdraw, is entitled to
withdraw from the contract for convenience will be
extended to 12 months. Interestingly, in the event of
withdrawal from the contract in the above
circumstances, any additional agreements concluded
by the consumer associated with it also expire.
The new Consumer Rights Act introduces also the
uniform regulation, as a matter of principle, of the
liability for the quality of a thing sold. In particular,
it must be noted that the new law adopts the seller’s
liability for goods being contrary to the contract.
What is significant, in the case of sale made to the
consumer, public assurances of the manufacturer and
parties marketing the product as part of their
business operations are treated as equivalent to the
assurances given by the seller. Further, the new
consumer rights legislation also introduces detailed
regulations of the entrepreneur’s liability for issuing
goods to the consumer that are contrary to the
contract, and in particular liability for accidental loss
or destruction of the goods, which can be particularly
significant in the case of mail-order sales.
It is also worth noting that the new regulations lay
down detailed rules for pursuing claims on the
grounds of defective products between the
successive sellers. In particular, in the event a seller
incurs costs as a result of exercise by the consumer
of rights under warranty for physical defects of goods, the seller is entitled to a claim against that of
the previous sellers, whose actions or omissions
rendered the goods defective. Significantly, however,
the above recourse claim of the seller becomes time-
barred with the expiry of six months calculated, in
principle, from the date the seller incurs costs as a
result of exercise by the consumer of rights under
warranty for defects of goods.
MILLER, CANFIELD,
W. BABICKI, A. CHEŁCHOWSKI I WSPÓLNICY SP.K.
ul. Batorego 28-32
81-366 Gdynia
Tel. +48 58 782-0050
Fax +48 58 782-0060
gdynia@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Nowogrodzka 11
00-513 Warszawa
Tel. +48 22 447-4300
Fax +48 22 447-4301
warszawa@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Skarbowców 23a
53-125 Wrocław
Tel. +48 71 780-3100
Fax +48 71 780-3101
wroclaw@pl.millercanfield.com
Disclaimer: This publication has been prepared for clients and professional associates of Miller Canfield. It is intended to provide only a summary
of certain recent legal developments of selected areas of law. For this reason the information contained in this publication should not form the
basis of any decision as to a particular course of action; nor should it be relied on as legal advice or regarded as a substitute for detailed advice in
individual cases. The services of a competent professional adviser should be obtained in each instance so that the applicability of the relevant
legislation or other legal development to the particular facts can be verified.