To date, online marketplaces and comparison portals have not wanted to voluntarily provide any information about many important questions, such as ranking or market coverage, or have not considered themselves responsible. The implementation of a European directive into German law now provides more clarity with new information requirements.

Information about the contractual partner

In the future, online marketplaces or sales platforms such as Amazon or Ebay will have to indicate if a provider is an entrepreneur or a private individual.

“If, on the other hand, a contract is concluded privately, there is no right of withdrawal and, as a rule, no warranty. When the contract is concluded, you can estimate what rights you are entitled to if problems arise,” says Tatjana Halm, lawyer at the Bavarian Consumer Center.

Booking and comparison portals such as Check24 or Idealo, in turn, must explain whether they take on certain tasks for the providers listed on their portals.

“This should make it clearer who is the right person to contact if you have problems or questions,” explains Nicole Bahn, consumer law consultant and team leader at the Bremen Consumer Center.

Information about rankings and search results

Booking and comparison portals such as Check24 or Idealo will in future have to explain whether commissions have an influence on the search results. “In this way, consumers can better classify the ranking list that is displayed to them and, if necessary, adjust their search again,” says the expert. Comparison portals must also indicate which companies they include in their ranking.

“Often the offer overviews do not reflect the entire market. But many users are not aware of this,” says Tatjana Halm.

The portals should therefore provide a list of the providers that are included in the comparison.

“But that alone doesn’t help,” says the lawyer. “Consumers need to know which other important providers are on the market. This is the only way you can take their products into account when searching.”

In a separate information area, interested parties should also find out which main parameters influence the search results and to what extent. This could be the number of views or the rating of a product or its provider. The number of sales or the popularity of a service can also influence the search results, as can commissions or fees.

Platforms on which tickets are resold must indicate the original ticket price in addition to the requested price.

“We are repeatedly contacted by consumers who have been sold tickets to popular events at exorbitantly overpriced prices. “Such exorbitant prices should now be at least immediately recognizable,” says Tatjana Halm.

More transparent reviews on online marketplaces

In the future, when companies offer reviews for goods and services, they will also need to provide information about whether and how they ensure that reviews are only provided by people who have actually purchased the product or service. However, the new transparency requirements bring little progress.

“We would have liked a legal obligation that states that the authenticity of a review must be checked,” said the lawyer. “In the future, consumers should pay attention to whether supposed top ratings are marked as authentic.”

New compensation for consumers

Also new is compensation for damages based on competition law. If an entrepreneur acts unfairly against a consumer, the consumer may be entitled to compensation. The prerequisite for this is that the consumer was influenced by such an unfair act to purchase a particular product. For example, if the person concerned drives to a store further away on the same day for a particularly cheap offer, but the desired product is no longer available. The retailer may have to reimburse the costs incurred.

Conclusion

Online marketplaces will be significantly more transparent for consumers from May 28, 2022. Various innovations strengthen consumer rights. The information as to whether the provider operates privately or commercially influences possible cancellation rights. Price portals must inform whether commissions have been paid that influence the ranking or search results. When it comes to reviews, it must be clear whether the products were actually purchased. In the event of unfair business actions by an entrepreneur, consumers now have a new claim for damages.

This might also be of interest: Be careful when paying cashless

Source: Bavaria Consumer Center and Bremen Consumer Center


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