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19 Amendments of Jiří POSPÍŠIL related to 2018/0089(COD)

Amendment 87 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 21
(21) In low-value cases most consumers are unlikely to take action in order to enforce their rights because the efforts would outweigh the individual benefits. However, if the same practice concerns a number of consumers, the aggregated loss may be significant. In such cases, a court or authority may consider that it is disproportionate to distribute the funds back to the consumers concerned, for example because it is too onerous or impracticable. Therefore the funds received as redress through representative actions would better serve the purposes of the protection of collective interests of consumers and should be directed to a relevant public purpose, such as a consumer legal aid fund, awareness campaigns or consumer movements.deleted
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 111 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 31
(31) Ensuring that consumers are informed about a representative action is crucial for its success. Consumers should be informed of ongoing representative action, the fact that a trader's practice has been considered as a breach of law, their rights following the establishment of an infringement and any subsequent steps to be taken by consumers concerned, particularly for obtaining redress. The reputational risks associated with spreading information about the infringement are also important for deterring traders infringing consumer rights.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 114 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 32
(32) To be effective, the information should be adequate and proportional to the circumstances of the case, and there should not be an excessive increase in the administrative burden and costs for traders. The infringing trader should adequately inform all consumers concerned of a final injunction and redress orders issued within the representative action as well as of a settlement approved by a court or administrative authority. Such information may be provided for instance on the trader's website, social media, online market places, or in popular newspapers, including those distributed exclusively by electronic means of communication. If possible, consumers should be informed individually through electronic or paper letters. This information should be provided in accessible formats for persons with disabilities upon request.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 37
(37) Evidence is an important element for establishing whether a given practice constitutes an infringement of law, whether there is a risk of its repetition, for determining the consumers concerned by an infringement, deciding on redress and adequately informing consumers concerned by a representative action about the ongoing proceedings and its final outcomes. However, business-to-consumer relationships are characterised by information asymmetry and the necessary information may be held exclusively by the trader, making it inaccessible to the qualified entity. Qualified entities should therefore be afforded the right to request to the competent court or administrative authority the disclosure by the trader of evidence relevant to their claim or needed for adequately informing consumers concerned about the representative action, without it being necessary for them to specify individual items of evidence. The need, scope and proportionality of such disclosure should be carefully assessed by the court or administrative authority overseeing the representative action having regard to the protection of legitimate interests of third parties and subject to the applicable Union and national rules on confidentiality.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 130 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1
1. This Directive sets out rules enabling qualified entities to seek representative actions aimed at the protection of the collective interests of consumers, while ensuring appropriate safeguards at EU and Member State level and their consistent EU-wide application to avoid abusive litigation.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 140 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point 3
(3) ‘collective interests of consumers’ means the interestsgeneral interest of consumers independent of athe number of consumers concerned by the case in question;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 158 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2 – point b
(b) it has a legitimate interest ins statutes, governance and track record demonstrate its legitimate interest in protecting consumers and ensuring that provisions of Union law covered by this Directive are complied with;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 160 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2 – point c
(c) it has a non-profit making character. and a governance structure providing complete independence from third parties and ensuring that no excessive salaries or office costs or other expenses are paid just to fulfill the non-profit criterion, nor is it a vehicle for pursuing litigation for profit controlled by others;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 163 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2 – point c a (new)
(c a) it has sufficient capacity in terms of human resources, and legal expertise to represent multiple claimants acting in their best interest;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 165 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2 – point c b (new)
(c b) it has in place due procedures to identify, prevent and deal with conflicts of interests;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 191 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 5 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2
In order to seek injunction orders, qualified entities shall not have to obtain the mandate of all the individual consumers concerned or provide proof of actual loss or damage on the part of the consumers concerned or of intention or negligence on the part of the trader.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 252 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 7 – paragraph 2 – point a a (new)
(a a) to receive any direct or indirect financial benefit through the litigation process or decision;
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 266 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 9 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall ensure that the court or administrative authority shall require the infringing trader to inform affected consumers at its expense about the final decisions providing for measures referred to in Articles 5 and 6, and the approved settlements referred to in Article 8, by means appropriate to the circumstance of the case and within specified time limits, including, where appropriate, through notifying all consumers concerned individually.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 279 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 10 – paragraph 3
3. Member States shall ensure that a final declaratory decision referred to in Article 6(2) is deemed as irrefutably establishing the liability of the trader towards the harmed consumers by an infringement for the purposes of any actions seeking redress before their national courts against the same trader for that infringement. Member States shall ensure that such actions for redress brought individually by consumers are available through expedient and simplified procedures.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 281 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 11 – paragraph 1
In accordance with national law, Member States shall ensure that the submission of a representative action as referred to in Articles 5 and 6 shall have the effect of suspending or interrupting limitation periods applicable to any redress actions for the consumers concerned, if the relevant rights are subject to a limitation period under Union or national law.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 284 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 13 – paragraph 1
Member States shall ensure that, at the request of a qualified entity that has presented reasonably available facts and evidence sufficient to support the representative action, and has indicated further evidence which lies in the control of the defendant, provided such information is precisely described and narrowly limited to what is proportionate, the court or administrative authority may order, in accordance with national procedural rules, that such evidence be presented by the defendant, subject to the applicable Union and national rules on confidentiality.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 289 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 15 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that procedural costs related to representative actions do not constitute financial obstacles for qualified entities to effectively exercise the right to seek the measures referred to in Articles 5 and 6, such as limiting applicable court or administrative fees, granting them access to legal aid where necessary, or by providing them with public funding for this purpose.deleted
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 291 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 15 – paragraph 2
2. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that ithe party that loses a collective redress action reimburses necessary legal costs borne by the winning party, subject to the conditions provided for in the relevant national law. In cases where the qualified entities are required to inform consumers concerned about the ongoing representative action the related cost may be recovered from the trader if the action is successful.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO
Amendment 293 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 16 – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall take the measures necessary to ensure that any qualified entity designated in advance in one Member State in accordance with Article 4(1) may apply to the courts or administrative authorities of another Member State upon the presentation of the publicly available list referred to in that Article. The courts or administrative authorities shall accept this list as proof of the legal standing of the qualified entity without prejudice to their right to examine whether the purpose of the qualified entity justifies its taking action in a specific case.
2018/09/28
Committee: IMCO