Infinite Path

An EU investigation has found that over half of websites selling electronic goods were guilty of violating European laws designed specifically to protect the consumer. The investigation, which was carried out by trading standards departments and other authorities, analysed almost 370 websites selling products including mobile phones, digital cameras, and DVD players across nearly 30 European countries.

The results of the investigation come as no surprise to the thousands of people who encounter problems after dealing with such websites. One of the most common complaints surrounds the right to return a product within seven days but it seems that a large number of the websites investigated are guilty of providing deliberately misleading information about the product itself, the price and, on occasion, about the company or individual responsible for making the sale.

Although the investigation was relatively small-scale, some of the websites were specifically singled out for attention because they were perceived to be the biggest in the EU, whilst others were targeted after attracting intense criticism from a large number of consumers.

EU officials will be hoping that publishing these results will represent a step forward in the battle to increase transparency between consumer and trader and all offending websites will be asked to clarify their positions and rectify all the issues uncovered by the investigation.

Prosecution and hefty fines could result if traders ignore these initial steps but the process of encouraging companies to adhere to the most basic of standards is likely to be a long, problematic one. It is a battle worth fighting, though, particularly given the estimated value of the online electronic market (thought to be almost £6 billion).