PRAVO POTROŠAČA NA ODUSTANAK OD UGOVORA U PRAKSI SUDA PRAVDE EVROPSKE UNIJE

Abstract

The consumer's right to withdraw is an instrument for achieving a policy of high level of consumer protection in the European Union. It has been enshrined in the Directive 2011/83 EU on consumer rights and implemented in the national legislation of EU member states. It is also implemented in Serbian law through the Law on Consumer Protection. However, even before that, there were predecessors of this right in the national laws of individual countries, e.g. in Germany (1969), but also in the Serbian Law on Obligations (1978). In EU law, in the national laws of member states, as well as in states that aspire to be members (therefore, also in Serbia), consumers are entitled, in the case of concluding a consumer contract outside the trader’s business premises, as well as when concluding a contract at a distance, in a relatively short period, to withdraw from the contract, without citing any reasons, and without any negative consequences. A justifiable reason for giving consumers the right to withdraw from the contract is that they conclude contracts hastily in these situations; sometimes they are tempted to enter into contracts that may be harmful to their interests and for which, after sober reflection, they subsequently repent; they could also be "manipulated" by aggressive marketing methods. However, this right of consumers is also criticized, e.g. whether this one is needed in addition to the already existing instruments for protection; further, this right can also lead to consumer abuse etc. Although, at first glance, it is comprehensively regulated, the consumer's right to withdraw from the contract is not deprived of certain situations that lead to court disputes. Hence, the subject of this paper is the presentation of (only) some of the cases that the Court of Justice of the European Union had in its practice.