Liability Law as a Potential Obstacle to Circular Business Models in the Consumer Sector

Abstract

Circular economic business models such as repair, reuse, access-sharing or product-as-a-service, are increasingly present in the consumer sector. Together with new digital technologies, this development challenges the legal framework which currently exists in Europe in order to protect consumers and bystanders against physical and property damage resulting from products and services. General national liability law regimes, both contractual and extra-contractual, are not well adapted to allocate risk and liability in complex bundles of products and services which involve both professional (B2C) and non-professional offerings (C2C). Product liability law, which was developed in a linear economical context dominated by sales-contracts, equally struggles to address these new issues, because of the limitations of its scope of application and the way in which its liability criterion and defences have been formulated. Current attention is focused on liability for new digital technologies. However, it will also be necessary to take circular economic models into account when developing a new liability law for products and services which is suited to a more efficient and more sustainable economy.