ABSTRACT
Directive 2019/771/EU modernizes the consumer sales regime with particular attention to digitalisation. However, regarding sustainable consumption it largely maintains the status quo, which sharply contrasts with existing EU policy on sustainable development and the green ambitions heralded by the current Commission. This article critically analyses the directive’s major features from the perspective of societal and regulatory trends towards more sustainable and circular consumption. In doing so, it highlights several flaws of the directive, but also possibilities for future amendments and many currently available options for Member States aiming for a sustainability-friendly transposition. Notwithstanding the criticisms we raise, the pre-existing fundamentals of European consumer sales law in combination with appropriate new consumer and product regulation as well as soft law can, in our opinion, still serve as a strong enabler of sustainable consumption. Finally, the article aims to serve as an illustration of a methodical analysis of consumer contract law from the perspective of article 11 TFEU and of the broader implications of sustainable development and circular economy policies for European private law.
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Anaïs Michel and Elias Van Gool, The New Consumer Sales Directive 2019/771 and Sustainable Consumption, Journal of European Consumer and Market Law, volume 10, issue 4 (2021) pp 136–147.
First posted 2021-09-01 08:00:41
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