The clock is ticking for businesses, which will have until September 27 to comply with the new framework for the green transition.
The new rules target misleading environmental practices (greenwashing), enhancing consumer protection and transparency in the market. In fact, businesses should also take corrective actions, from changing online and advertising reports to adjusting their packaging.
What does the law provide?
The Consumer Protection Law transposes into national law the European Directive concerning the empowerment of consumers for the green transition, through better protection from unfair commercial practices and their more complete information.
The new framework seeks to protect consumers more effectively from misleading environmental practices (greenwashing), enhance transparency in the market and promote more sustainable consumption choices.
For the effective implementation of the new framework, the Consumer Protection Service has prepared a relevant guide, so that businesses are aware of their new obligations. At the same time, it provides guidelines for the management of products that have already been produced, imported and placed in the distribution chain.
Through the relevant guide, consumers will be able to know their rights and detect misleading practices. At the same time, businesses and professionals should comply with the law to avoid greenwashing practices.
Protection against deceptive acts
With the new legal framework in Cyprus, the provisions concerning misleading acts are strengthened. In particular, it expands the main characteristics of a product about which the consumer should not be misled and should receive clear information, including elements such as the main environmental or social characteristics of the product, durability, reparability and recyclability.
At the same time, two new practices are introduced that are considered misleading acts. The first concerns the making of claims for future environmental performance without clear, verifiable and documented commitments. The second concerns the advertising of benefits that are not fundamentally related to the product or business itself.
The legislation also introduces a new transparency obligation for services that compare products based on environmental, social or other sustainability characteristics.
By law, when consumers are provided with product comparisons, essential information should be given about the methodology of the comparison, the products and suppliers included in it, and how the relevant information is updated.
New information obligations
At the same time, pre-contractual information obligations are strengthened in contracts concluded outside the commercial establishment and in distance contracts.
In particular, new information obligations are introduced on the statutory guarantee of conformity, the commercial guarantee of durability, where it is provided, the duration of software updates for products with digital components, as well as the repairability score. Where no such rating exists, information should be provided on the availability of parts, their estimated cost, their ordering process, as well as the availability of instructions and repair restrictions.
At the same time, the consumer will be able to know, before purchasing a product, whether it comes with a commercial durability guarantee, for how long software updates will be provided, as well as whether the product can be repaired and under what conditions.
In addition, the Harmonised Notice on the Statutory Guarantee of Conformity and the Harmonised Label on the Commercial Guarantee of Durability are introduced for the first time.
An end to prohibited practices
At the same time, the information that must be provided before the conclusion of distance contracts by electronic means is updated to include the new information requirements introduced by the new framework. Finally, new prohibited practices are introduced, which are mainly aimed at tackling the phenomenon of greenwashing and enhancing transparency in the market.
