On the issue of consumers’ rights protection in Ukraine during the period of military situation

Abstract

In this article, the authors analyzes the current practical condition of consumer rights protection in Ukraine during the period of military situation, вecause one of the peculiarities of consumer relations is that they are inherent in any period of society’s existence, despite the influence of external factors of its development. The purpose of the article proposed for scientific comprehension is to analyze the current practical status of consumer rights protection during military situation in Ukraine. In order to obtain reliable results reflecting the real status of affairs regarding the peculiarities of consumer protection in Ukraine during military situation, it is advisable to use a number of methods, namely: specific sociological method to reflect the practical situation of consumer rights protection, statistical method to analyze the available practical data, formal legal method to clarify the legislative provisions on the issue in question, and synthesis method, which provided a comprehensive view of the specifics of the current legal status of consumer rights protection in Ukraine. It is emphasized that despite the special period, consumers have the same rights and obligations as in peacetime. Due to the introduction of restrictive legislation after February 24, 2022, the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection is partially deprived of its direct functional responsibilities, but provides advice on alternative ways to protect consumer rights, where the main actors are the courts, the National Bank of Ukraine, the State Tax Service, and the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language. It is also emphasized that, given the actual circumstances, the use of alternative ways to resolve the issue of protection and compensation is not always possible due to various obstacles (lack of communication with the business entity, inability to establish its actual address, improper examination, etc.). It also provides statistical data (850 requests have been processed) on the number of requests for public information in the area of consumer protection. The largest number of requests for public information were relate to ecology and environmental pollution, food safety and veterinary medicine, and providing copies of documents on food safety and veterinary medicine. At the end of the scientific article, the authors presented the relevant conclusions about practical condition of consumer rights protection in Ukraine during the period of military situation. Key words: consumer, protection of consumer rights, military situation, state supervision, control, alternative ways of issues solving, State Production and Consumer Service, statistical data, factors of complexity of protection.