The Consumer Rights Directive – An Assessment of its Contribution to the Development of European Consumer Contract Law

Abstract

Following a turbulent three year legislative process the Consumer Rights Directive was adopted in October 2011. Less ambitious than the original proposals, the Directive nevertheless extends the maximal harmonisation approach to a number of aspects concerning the pre-contractual information duties and right of withdrawal in B2C off-premises and distance contracts and also introduces other new features to the consumer acquis. The following paper focuses primarily on the new European rules concerning pre-contractual information obligations and the right of withdrawal. In so doing the authors will demonstrate that in spite of some of the steps forward, the Directive is overall a conservative consolidation that also in some respects takes a number of steps backwards. Its contribution to the development of European consumer contract law is therefore limited, although some of the new measures show an appreciation of the impact of behavioural economics for the most part it follows a rather traditional approach.