MARKETING: European commissioners Mr David Byrne and Mr Frits Bolkestein have welcomed European Parliament support for the proposed directive regarding telephone marketing of financial services, writes Clare O'Dea.
This directive lays down common rules for selling contracts for credit cards, investment funds, pension plans and other financial products to consumers by phone, fax or internet. The directive will now go back to Council for final adoption.
The directive fills the legal gap in existing consumer protection legislation left by the exclusion of financial services from the 1997 directive on distance selling. Its main features are:
the prohibition of abusive marketing practices seeking to oblige consumers to buy a service they have not solicited (inertia selling);
rules to restrict other practices such as unsolicited phone calls and e-mails (cold calling and spamming);
an obligation to provide consumers with comprehensive information before a contract is concluded; and
a consumer's right to withdraw from the contract during a cooling- off period, except in cases where there is a risk of price fluctuations in the financial market.
The agreed standards are in line with those already applicable to all other retail sectors.
The Council may now proceed with its final, formal adoption of the directive.
"This directive provides for enhanced consumer protection in the important and often complex area of marketing financial products," Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner Mr Byrne said.
"It complements and underpins the e-commerce Directive, making it easier for businesses to operate under legal certainty and for consumers to make transactions with confidence."
Internal Market Commissioner Frits Bolkestein added: "We need a truly European market for personal financial services. We need consumers and investors to have confidence in financial services providers. We need to make sure that the full potential of providing services by phone and internet is realised.
"This directive is a big step towards those goals, and towards better value for consumers and ensuring a pan-European market for reputable operators," Mr Bolkestein said.
