Léim ar aghaidh chuig an bpríomhábhar
Gnáthamharc

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 13 Jun 2000

Vol. 521 No. 1

Written Answers. - Consumer Report.

Nora Owen

Ceist:

94 Mrs. Owen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she will make a statement on the latest report by the Director of Consumer Affairs with particular reference to the director's statement on the need for protection for consumers who are using Internet banking and purchasing. [16618/00]

In the context of the references made in her annual report for 1999, to advertising on the Internet and to Internet banking, the Director of Consumer Affairs, Carmel Foley, pointed to these as relatively new developments. She identified one of the key challenges facing Ireland at present, and one to which she acknowledged the Government had shown its commitment and devoted much resources, as how to maximise the opportunity presented by e-commerce. Critical to this, in her assessment, was to recognise that, in whatever steps were taken, there had to be consumer confidence.

I fully share the director's assessment that consumer confidence is a crucial prerequisite for the success of e-commerce. This is true for Ireland, no less than for other EU member states. Indeed, David Byrne, the commissioner responsible for consumer protection, has identified the current mistrust of e-commerce as a transactional medium to be an important barrier to the completion of the Single On-Line Market. At the last Consumer Affairs Council in April 2000, along with other Consumer Affairs Ministers in the EU, I participated in the first discussion on the Commissioner's initial thinking about a new European approach to generating consumer e-confidence. Apart from fostering best business practice, such as trustmarks, codes of conduct and chargebacks, at the heart of the strategy he envisaged was development of a range of alternative dispute resolution, ADR, mechanisms, and linking up a network of existing EU national ADR schemes through the European Extra-Judicial Network – EEJ-Net – as a first step in creating a compre hensive redress system. Disputes could be resolved by the ADR in the country of origin of the business, but consumers would have the reassurance of knowing that they could access that body from their own member state via the EEJ-Net. As a last resort, consumers could seek redress through the courts in their own member state. In Commissioner Byrne's view, a new European approach along these lines would be a balanced one, which would serve to minimise the regulatory burden on business and encourage the evolution of a service-driven Single On-Line Market benefiting consumers and business alike.
At the same April 2000 Consumer Affairs Council, Ministers gave a positive political response to the commissioner by adopting a resolution in support of creation of the EEJ-Net. The EEJ-Net was formally launched in Lisbon on 5 May 2000 by Commissioner Byrne and the Portuguese Presidency, represented by the Secretary of State for Consumer Protection, with the participation of Antonio Vitorino, the commissioner responsible for Justice and Home Affairs. My Department was represented at the launch. The next stage in the process will be the creation or designation of a single, one-stop national contact point, or "clearing house", in each EU member state. The clearing houses will help dissatisfied consumers with information and support in making a claim to the appropriate ADR system in the country where the business supplying the goods or services is located. Commissioner Byrne's target is to have the 15 clearing houses up and running and ready to deal with consumer complaints in the second half of 2000, if at all possible. He has promised that, within its limited means, the Commission will contribute to the set-up costs of the clearing houses. My Department is engaging in preliminary discussions with the Director of Consumer Affairs on the question of the designation of Ireland's clearing house.
In its conclusions, the Lisbon European Council 23-24 March 2000, called on the Commission and the Council "to consider how to promote consumer confidence in electronic commerce, in particular through alternative dispute resolutions systems". The joint Portuguese Presidency – Foreign Minister Gama-Commission President Prodi – report to the European Parliament on 11 April 2000 on the results of the Lisbon European Council identified the Consumer Affairs Council as responsible for progressing ADR and the EEJ-Net. I therefore expect to be actively engaged in the future in this important challenge, along with my colleagues from the other member states. Liaison with Justice and Home Affairs and Internal Market Councils may be expected.
At national level, there is what I might call a horizontal measure on its way through the Oireachtas – the E-Commerce Bill, 2000 – which will have the effect of protecting consumers: The Bill provides that electronic signatures and electronic contracts will have the same legal status as written signatures and paper contracts. This means that, in the event of a dispute, electronic signatures and electronic contracts will be admissible as evidence in court proceedings. The Bill also prescribes heavy fines and jail sentences for fraud and misuse of electronic signatures. I should also mention the e-commerce directive, which will serve to provide additional protection for consumers when transposed into Irish law. Website traders will be required to show their name, address and contact details. They will have to clearly display the price, tax and delivery costs as well.
Apart from all the initiatives which I have outlined, I would advise consumers to exercise caution and use common sense when buying online. For example, deal with known reputable websites where possible. Be aware of the complaints procedure applicable should there be a problem. Deal with websites that provide encryption of financial data, and avoid any site that seems to misrepresent itself. Read the vendor's terms and conditions carefully to find out your rights and obligations under the contract. Exercise the same caution when giving your credit card details over the Internet as you would for telephone transactions, and preferably use encrypted websites which are considerably less vulnerable to hackers than sites with no encryption.
Barr
Roinn