Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 2

RemovedSHORT JUSTIFICATION

AddedRecital 2 a (new): (2a) In order to reach its full potential and deliver for consumers, this Directive should require participation to be mandatory for air carriers falling under the scope of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, provided that it does not prevent the parties from exercising their right of access to the judicial system. This is the case, given that several studies have highlighted the high number of consumer complaints in the transport and tourism sector, especially in the field of air passengers rights.

RemovedOn 17 October 2023, the Commission submitted the proposal for a Directive amending Directive 2013/11/EU on alternative dispute resolution for consumer disputes, as well as Directives (EU) 2015/2302, (EU) 2019/2161 and (EU) 2020/1828 to the Council and the European Parliament. On 13 March 2024, the European Parliament adopted its first reading position.

AddedRecital 2 b (new): (2b) ADR entities should communicate to the competent authorities a list of traders who systematically and unduly refuse to comply with the outcomes of ADR procedures. Furthermore, Member States should ensure that, where they do not comply with the outcome of an ADR procedure, traders are required to provide the other parties to the ADR procedure with a written explanation.

RemovedThe interinstitutional negotiations started on 20 February 2025 with a view to reaching an early second reading agreement. They were successfully concluded on 26 June 2025. The provisionally agreed text was confirmed by COREPER on 16 July 2025 and endorsed by the IMCO Committee on 25 September 2025.

AddedRecital 3: (3) Since at least two out of five online transactions made by consumers residing in the Union are with traders based in third countries, the scope of Directive 2013/11/EU should be extended to allow those third country traders willing to participate in an ADR procedure to do so. No procedural impediments should hinder consumers residing in the Union from resolving disputes against traders, irrespective of their establishment, if the traders accept to follow an ADR procedure through an ADR entity established in a Member State. In accordance with applicable Union law, the consumer should be able to commence a procedure in the Member State where he or she resides. It should not be possible to access ADR procedures in a Member State in which neither the consumer resides nor the trader is established.

RemovedSince the Council’s first reading position adopted on 17 November 2025 reflects the agreement reached between the Parliament and the Council in early second reading interinstitutional negotiations, including also the changes resulting from the legal-linguistic revision, the Rapporteur recommends that it is endorsed by the European Parliament without amendments, so that the Directive can be adopted swiftly and enter into force as soon as possible.

AddedRecital 4: (4) The complexity of consumer disputes has evolved significantly since the adoption of Directive 2011/13/EU. Digitalisation of goods and services, the growing importance of e-commerce and digital advertising in the formation of consumer contracts has resulted in a rise in the number of consumers being exposed to misleading online information and manipulative interfaces preventing them from making informed purchasing decisions. It is, therefore, necessary to clarify that contractual disputes arising from the sale of goods or services include digital content and digital services, and to extend the scope of Directive 2011/13/EU, beyond such disputes so that consumers are also able to seek redress for practices harming them at a pre-contractual stage, provided they later become bound by a contract, or at a post-contractual stage.

AddedRecital 5: (5) Moreover, Directive 2011/13/EU should also cover consumer rights arising from Union legislation which governs relationships between consumers and traders when there is no relationship of a contractual nature, with respect to the right to access and to pay for goods and services without undergoing discrimination based on nationality, place of residence or of establishment, as provided for in Articles 4 and 5 of Regulation (EU) 2018/302 of the European Parliament and of the Council3, or on any ground as referred to in Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union; the right to open and switch bank accounts as provided for in Articles 9, 10, 11, and 16 of Directive 2014/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council4 and to not be discriminated against as provided for in Article 15 of that Directive; the right to receive transparent information on retail conditions for roaming calls and SMS messages as provided for in Articles 13, 14 and 15 of Regulation (EU) 2022/612 of the European Parliament and of the Council5 , the right to price transparency in air fares and rates as provided for in Article 23 of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council6 . Therefore, it should be provided that disputes arising in relation to such categories of consumer rights can be dealt with in ADR procedures.

AddedRecital 5 a (new): (5a) Member States should take note of the Commission Recommendation of 17 October 2023 on quality requirements for dispute resolution procedures offered by online marketplaces and Union trade associations. The Commission should be encouraged to complement this Directive with a Regulation on quality requirements for dispute resolution procedures offered by online marketplaces and Union trade associations.

AddedRecital 10: (10) Member States should ensure that ADR should enable consumer to initiate and follow ADR procedures also offline if requested. It should also be ensured that when digital tools are provided, those can be used by all consumers, including vulnerable consumers or those with varying levels of digital literacy. Members States should ensure that parties to the disputes, in particular consumers, have access to a review of automated procedures by a natural person, who should be independent and impartial.

AddedRecital 10 a (new): (10a) In order to enhance consumer and traders’ trust and increase their participation in ADR procedures, it is fundamental to ensure that the functioning and work of ADR entities is of good quality. In this sense, the expertise and knowledge of the ADR entity staff should be updated on a regular basis. Therefore, ADR entities should provide natural persons in charge of ADR procedures with regular training to ensure their knowledge is continuously updated.

AddedRecital 11: (11) Member States should also enable ADR entities with sufficient knowledge to bundle similar cases against a specific trader, where the natural persons in charge of ADR procedures have sufficient knowledge and expertise to deal with the case. This would help to make ADR outcomes consistent for consumers subjected to the same illegal practice, and more cost-efficient for ADR entities and for traders. Consumers should be informed accordingly and should be given the opportunity to refuse from having their dispute bundled.

AddedRecital 13: (13) Under Directive 2013/11/EU, Member States may introduce national legislation to make trader participation in ADR compulsory in sectors they deem fit, in addition to sector-specific Union legislation which provides for mandatory participation of traders in ADR. To encourage traders’ participation in the ADR procedures and to ensure due and swift ADR procedures, traders should be required, especially in cases where their participation is not compulsory, to respond within a specific period that should not exceed 15 working days to enquiries made by ADR entities on whether they intend to participate to the proposed procedure. An extension of this deadline could be granted for complex disputes or as a result of exceptional circumstances, such as a period of high activity or an external crisis.

AddedRecital 13 a (new): (13a) In order to ensure that consumers can expect full independence and impartiality, as provided for in this Directive, when dealing with all types of ADR entities, including ADR entities where the natural persons in charge of dispute resolution are employed or remunerated exclusively by the individual trader, also commonly referred to as ‘in-house’ ADR entities, such ADR entities should only have access to data strictly related to the case and explicitly provided by the trader or the consumer.

AddedRecital 14: deleted

AddedRecital 14 a (new): (14a) ADR procedures should preferably be free of charge for the consumer. In the event that costs are applied, those costs should not exceed a nominal fee. Furthermore, in order to increase the accessibility and attractiveness of ADR procedures to consumers, those fees should be reimbursable. It is important to clarify that such reimbursement is to be made by Member States, in full compliance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, and not by other entities, such as the other party to the ADR procedure.

AddedRecital 14 b (new): (14b) In many Member States, consumers are still insufficiently informed about the existence and services proposed by ADR entities. In order to increase consumer awareness about ADR entities and traders participating in ADR procedures, traders should provide ADR information in a clear, prominent, comprehensible and easily accessible way. Where the trader has a website, it should present the information on it. Traders should also provide such information in their general terms and conditions and on invoices issued by them. In order to facilitate communication, traders should make an email address available allowing consumers to contact them, including for the purpose of ADR procedures.

AddedRecital 14 c (new): (14c) A swift cooperation between the different actors involved in the enforcement of consumer rights is crucial to ensure the overall consistency and coherence of the consumer enforcement system. In cases where an unfair commercial practice has been brought to the attention of ADR entities, those entities should report to their national competent authorities or consumer organisation if they have credible reasons to suspect that an unfair commercial practice and terms has occurred.

AddedRecital 15: (15) To provide effective assistance to consumers and traders in cross-border disputes, it is necessary to ensure that Member States establish ADR contact points with clearly defined tasks. European Consumer Centres (“ECCs”) are well placed to perform such tasks, as they are specialised in assisting consumers with issues with their cross-border purchases, but Member States should also be able to choose other bodies with relevant expertise. Member States should communicate those designated ADR contact points to the Commission and ensure that they have adequate budgetary and human resources. Consumers should be entitled to carry out a cross-border ADR procedure in an official language of the Member State in which they are resident.

AddedRecital 15 a (new): (15a) To ensure procedural fairness, consumers engaging in cross-border disputes should engage with the ADR contact point determined by the consumer’s place of residence, thereby discouraging selective choice of ADR contact points for convenience or advantageous outcomes.

AddedRecital 15 b (new): (15b) In cross-border disputes, ADR entities should use Union law as a point of reference for the resolution of the disputes. Nevertheless, in both domestic and cross-border disputes, ADR entities should always take into account the remedies available in Union and applicable national law.

AddedRecital 16: (16) Despite the fact that ADR procedures are meant to be simple, consumers may be assisted by a third party of their choice during ADR procedures. Member States should ensure that such assistance is provided in good faith to allow a fair procedure and in full transparency, in particular regarding the possible fees required in exchange for the assistance. In addition, Member States are encouraged to extend the benefit of consumer ADR systems to micro enterprises and self employed to ensure that such businesses have access to cheap and quality alternative dispute resolution systems to solve contractual disputes.

AddedRecital 16 a (new): (16a) Not all ADR entities have the expertise to deal with non-contractual matters, in particular unfair commercial practices and terms. Therefore, procedures of ADR entities in this area should be limited to unfair commercial practices and terms with a personal scope, and hence only cover matters where a damage or loss, material or immaterial, has occurred to the consumer directly. In addition, only ADR entities that can demonstrate necessary expertise in the relevant area, covering the relevant economic sector in its entirety, such as a sectorial ombudsman, should be empowered to take on such procedures. ADR entities sometimes choose to deviate from strict legal provisions in order to base their decisions on equity principles. This implies that ADR entities could opt for solutions that, in their judgment, align with a sense of what is morally or ethically right in a particular situation, diverging from a strict adherence to legal statutes. However, the use of fairness principles should not be acceptable when it comes to unfair commercial practices, which are not subject to compromises or mediated outcomes as they touch upon public order and the fundamentals of consumer protection.

AddedRecital 16 b (new): (16b) The means used by consumer organisations and business associations to make the Commission’s list of ADR entities publicly available can include relevant broadcasts concerning consumer protection and consumer rights.

AddedRecital 17: (17) To ensure that consumers are able to easily find a suitable ADR entity, especially in a cross-border context, the Commission should develop and maintain a digital interactive tool that provides information about ADR entities’ main characteristics, practical information about how to avail of ADR procedures in a cross-border context and links to the webpages of the ADR entities, as notified to it, allowing consumers to be directed to a competent body to resolve their disputes. The Commission should ensure coordination between this digital interactive tool and other EU and national digital tools, where appropriate.

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point -1 (new), Article 1: -1. Article 1 is replaced by the following: / ‘The purpose of this Directive is, through the achievement of a high level of consumer protection, to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market by ensuring that consumers can, on a voluntary basis, submit complaints against traders to entities offering independent, impartial, transparent, effective, fast and fair alternative dispute resolution procedures. / The participation of air carriers falling under the scope of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 in ADR procedures shall be mandatory, without prejudice to the right of parties to access the judicial system. / This Directive is without prejudice to national legislation making participation in such procedures mandatory in economic sectors other than those referred to in the second subparagraph, provided that such legislation does not prevent the parties from exercising their right of access to the judicial system.’

Added(32013L0011)

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point a: (a) contractual obligations stemming from sales contracts, including for the supply of digital content, or service contracts, including pre-contractual and post-contractual obligations and in particular in relation to: / (i) unfair commercial practices and terms; / (ii) compulsory pre-contractual information ; / (iii) passenger and travellers’ rights; / (iv) remedies in the event of non-conformity of products and digital content; and / (v) access to deliveries.

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – introductory part: (b) consumer rights applicable to non-contractual situations and provided in Union law concerning:

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point i: (i) non-discrimination on the basis of nationality or place of residence;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point ii: (ii) access to services;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iii: (iii) right to switch providers; and

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point iv: (iv) unfair commercial practices not falling under point (a)(i), provided that: / (1) the ADR entity is a sectorial coverage entity with the necessary knowledge about unfair commercial practices; / (2) the ADR entity has adequate resources and funding; / (3) the unfair practice resulted in material or immaterial damage to the consumer; and / (4) the entity applies applicable law when dealing with unfair commercial practices.

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point v: deleted

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point vi: deleted

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 1, Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point b – point vii: deleted

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 2 a (new), Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point f a (new): 2a. In Article 4, the following point is inserted: / ‘(fa) “unfair commercial practice” means any misleading commercial practice within the meaning of Annex I to Directive 2005/29/EC.’.

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point a, Article 5 – paragraph 1: 1. Member States shall facilitate access by consumers to ADR procedures and shall ensure that disputes covered by this Directive and which involve a trader established on their respective territories, or a trader not established in the territory of any Member State but offering goods or services, including digital content and digital services, to consumers residing in their respective territories, can be submitted to an ADR entity which complies with the requirements set out in this Directive. Member States may facilitate access by self-employed or micro enterprises to ADR procedures.

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b, Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point -a (new): (-a) maintain an up-to-date website which provides the parties with easy access to information concerning the ADR procedure;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b, Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point a a (new): (aa) ensure that consumers can submit complaints in the Member State in which they reside;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b, Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point c: (c) when the procedure was carried out by automated means, ensure that parties to the dispute have access to review by a natural person, who is independent and impartial;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU

AddedArticle 1 – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point b, Article 5 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) may bundle similar cases against one specific trader into one procedure, on condition that the consumer concerned is informed and expressly agrees to that bundling and that, in accordance with Article 6, the natural persons in charge of the ADR procedures have sufficient knowledge to deal with the case;

AddedDirective 2013/11/EU