New law to improve consumer protection

BELGRADE - Under the new consumer protection law, consumers who have a complaint about faulty goods will be entitled to a refund, replacement or repair for six months after the purchase, and the refund will be provided within 30 days, Minister of Trade, Tourism and Telecommunications Rasim Ljajic said Monday.

Customer complaints will be addressed within 8 days, instead of 15, said Ljajic presenting the new law on consumer protection in the Serbian parliament.

The law will provide sufficient instruments to enable a more efficient and successful protection of consumer rights, he said.

Ljajic also announced that a national register of consumer complaints will be maintained in order to gather all information regarding complaints and resolved consumer disputes, adding that the market inspectors will again have the right to impose monetary fines.

For claims worth up to RSD 500,000 legal fees will be scrapped, in order to motivate consumers to fight for their rights in a court of law, the minister added.

Noting that this is the fourth time since 2002 that the consumer protection law is being amended, Ljajic pointed out that this is a dynamic area, constantly changing not only in Serbia but around the world.

The law that was passed in 2010 had to be amended because of the new EU directives in this field, which resulted in changes to around 50 percent of the provisions.

Draft amendments to the Law on Electronic Communications also envisage the joining of the Republic Agency for Electronic Communications (RATEL) with the Republic Agency for Postal Services (RaPUS), which, according to Ljajic, is not expected to produce significant cost cuts but to bring more order to the area.

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