E-commerce: new obligations for professionals

Ordinance No. 2021-1734 transposing the so-called "Omnibus" directive on the better application and modernization of EU consumer protection rules, which aims to regulate certain online commerce practices, came into force on May 28, 2022.  A first part of the ordinance strengthens the obligations of online sales sites, which must now verify that reviews under products offered for sale have been published by people who have purchased the product or used the service in question. Marketplaces will also be required to disclose additional information to the consumer, such as how contractual obligations are divided between the third party offering the goods, services or digital content, and the online marketplace provider, and indicate the key metrics that determine the ranking of the products presented to the consumer in response to his or her search query, and the order of importance of those metrics. Finally, e-commerce sites that apply "personalized pricing" based on purchasing behavior will have to clearly indicate this.  A second section regulates price reduction ads. These must be based on "the lowest price charged by the trader during a period of thirty days preceding the promotion and from which the reduction is applied" or, in the case of successive reductions during a given period, the previous price charged before the application of the first price reduction.

These consumer information obligations apply to all contracts concluded by means of distance communication, and the information must be provided on a durable medium. Consequently, this information must appear not only on websites but also on all commercial documents used during the customer relationship (general terms and conditions of sale, order forms, contracts, etc.).

Sanctions for non-compliance with these obligations are reinforced, and consumers benefit from new rights in case of non-compliance, such as obtaining compensation for damages suffered or a price reduction, or terminating the contract. Professionals will therefore be advised to audit their e-commerce site and their commercial documentation and to bring them into compliance with these new rules without delay.