EU: Stricter regulations to combat greenwashing and to empower consumers on the horizon

Since October 26, 2023, the result of the trilogue talks between the Commission, the Council and the European Parliament on the proposed directive amending Directives 2005/29/EC and 2011/83/EU as regards empowering consumers for the green transition through better protection against unfair practices and better information ("Empowering Consumers Directive") is available. The updated draft directive, scheduled for reading in the European Parliament in the second third of November 2023, can be found here. The original draft directive was proposed by the Commission on 30 March 2022.

The draft Empowering Consumer Directive provides for adaptations to Directive 2005/29/EC concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market ("Unfair Commercial Practices Directive") on the one hand, and Directive 2011/83/EU on consumer rights. ("Consumer Rights Directive"). Among other things, the adaptions provide for significantly stricter regulations for the admissibility of environmental claims in advertising. For example, there will be new specific per se bans on the use of sustainability labels, (generic) environmental claims and claims based on greenhouse gas emissions offsetting. In addition, concrete requirements for the use of environmental claims related to future environmental performance will be established for the first time. The amendments to the Consumer Rights Directive also provide for increased information requirements for consumers regarding legal guarantees of conformity and commercial guarantees of durability of more than two years for goods (including goods with digital elements) as well as digital content and digital services. New information requirements are also included on the reparability of goods. These requirements are complemented by further new per se prohibitions in the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, such as on specific unfair commercial practices in connection with claims regarding software updates, goods containing a feature introduced to limit its durability as well as durability and repairability.

As things stand at present, it can be assumed that the Empowering Consumer Directive will be adopted in the course of the first half of 2024, before the elections to the new European Parliament. The draft provides for a deadline for transposition into national law by the member states of 24 months after the directive enters into force. The new provisions will be binding 30 months after entry into force.

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