The purpose of the Omnibus Directive, which clarifies the EU Consumer Protection Directive, is to make pricing, marketing, and data usage more transparent for consumers. The Omnibus Directive applies to all businesses engaged in B2C e-commerce within the EU.

The Omnibus Directive is designed for both consumers and e-retailers. It supports the rapidly growing e-commerce sector and aims to make online trading more transparent and clear. 

A key change involves the notification of discount and promotional prices, but the directive introduces other changes as well.

A legislative amendment is required in Finland to establish national guidelines for the EU Directive. The amendment to the Consumer Protection Act came into force on 1 January 2023.

Omnibus Directive in a nutshell:

What is the Omnibus Directive? 

The purpose of the Omnibus Directive is to clarify the obligations of companies engaged in consumer trade regarding the disclosure of discount and promotional pricing. Additionally, it affects consumer reviews of products provided by businesses. Read more about the improvements the EU Omnibus Directive brings to consumer protection.

What does the Omnibus Directive mean?

The Directive refines the EU Consumer Protection Directive. It also clarifies the national Consumer Protection Act and provides additional guidance on the law concerning unfair commercial practices. Read what consumer protection authorities say about the upcoming changes for entrepreneurs.

Effects of the Directive on e-retailers:

• The Omnibus Directive clarifies consumer pricing

  • Price forming through algorithms tailored to individual consumers is no longer allowed without specific notification

  • The history of discount prices is country-specific. According to the Omnibus Directive, online stores must disclose the lowest price of a product during the previous 30 days.

  • In a marketing campaign lasting no more than 60 days, where the discount continuously increases, the lowest reported price is the one at which the product was marketed during the 30 days preceding the first price reduction.

✏️ Ensure that the online store has a price history feature, allowing the calculation of the lowest price over 30 days.
The Omnibus Directive makes data usage more transparent and extends the protection of the Personal Data Act.

• More detailed disclosure of the use of tracking data

  • In the future, a data agreement is considered established as soon as the service is used

  • A data transaction or data agreement will suffice by merely viewing advertisements, clicking a link, or browsing a feed.

• The consumer reviews published by the company must be truthful

  • The new Consumer Protection Act clarifies what information must be provided to the consumer to support purchasing decisions. These include, for example:

    • Authentic product reviews: Product reviews must originate from consumers, and the retailer must be able to verify this.

      • No fabricated product reviews

      • No purchased reviews

      • No distortion of reviews from social media or consumers

    • The basis for organising search results must be visible

    • There must be consistency between product images and actual images.

✏️ Ensure that the review in the online store is linked to an order or customer, for example, at login. If the review is submitted anonymously, ensure that the link to the order is verifiable.

When must the changes be implemented?

The Directive came into effect in EU countries on 28 May 2022. The changes to the Consumer Protection Act came into effect on 1 January 2023.

The article was published on 13 June 2022 and updated on 1 February 2023.

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Thank you for your inquiry. We will get back to you shortly.

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Best regards, the Crasman team

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 Do you need help with the changes brought by the Omnibus Directive? Contact us.

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