Consumer protection

Three goals are pursued for achieving that purpose: 

• Protecting the life and health of consumers.
• Protecting the economic interests of consumers with the purpose of improving their quality of life.

In order to ensure the well-being of consumers and a well-functioning market, it is important to raise the awareness of citizens, to be able to operate independently in the internal market and to be sufficiently capable and trusting consumers of cross-border goods and services, especially on the Internet.
The basic principles of Estonian consumer protection are laid down in the Consumer Protection Act. In addition, the most important rules concerning consumer rights are defined:

• In the Law of Obligations Act has requirements for contracts to which the consumer is a party, and rights in case of breach of contract
• In the Advertising Act has requirements for product and service advertising 
• In the Tourism Act has requirements for the sale of a package travel and obligations of the travel enterprise and accommodation service provider 
• In the Product Conformity Act has rules for ensuring product safety and related information
• In the Alcohol Act has requirements for the handling of alcohol, restrictions on the consumption of alcoholic beverages 
• In the Tobacco Act has requirements for the tobacco product and its packaging, and handling of the tobacco product

Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority

The Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority is a government agency that represents the interests of consumers and develops and implements consumer policy in accordance with Estonian and European Union standards.
 
The duties of the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority include: 

• Supervision of the fulfilment of the requirements established for the protection of consumers
• Protection of consumers' economic interests 
• Advising consumers and traders, raising their awareness
• Resolving consumer complaints  

Protecting the interests of consumers in European Union 

 The Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority also operates the European Consumer Centre (ECC), which helps consumers when they have a dispute with a trader from another member state. The counselling centre belongs to the pan-European network, European Consumer Centre Network, and offers various free services to consumers:

• Information about consumer rights in the European Union
• Advice on problems related to cross-border purchases
• Resolving or mediating specific complaints to the relevant authorities in any member state of the European Union

 Out-of-court settlement of consumer disputes

 If a consumer has a problem with a purchased product or service, for example, if the trader refuses to repair the product or provide a refund, the consumer can try to resolve the dispute out of court. The out-of-court settlement of the dispute is simpler, faster, and cheaper compared to court proceedings, and is therefore beneficial for both the consumer and the trader.

A contractual dispute between a consumer and a trader is resolved by the independent and impartial Consumer Disputes Committee operating at the Consumer Protection Authority. The committee is responsible for resolving disputes, particularly those involving a trader registered in Estonia.

Before contacting the commission, the consumer must contact the trader and give it the opportunity to solve the problem. The proceedings of the dispute in the committee are free of charge for the parties. As a result of the procedure, the commission makes a recommendation to resolve the dispute.

The Online Dispute Resolution platform, or ODR platform, created by the European Commission is helpful in resolving disputes related to online contracts between the consumer and the trader, including cross-border disputes.
Through the ODR platform, the consumer can submit an application to resolve a dispute related to a contract concluded online and find a competent out-of-court dispute resolution unit to resolve the dispute.

The ODR platform is available in all official languages of the European Union

In addition, three other entities for out-of-court settlement of consumer disputes have been recognised:

Insurance conciliation body at the Estonian Insurance Association

E-mail: [email protected], phone 667 1800, Mustamäe Road 46, Tallinn 10621

Disputes related to insurance contracts: Traffic insurance conciliation body at the Traffic Insurance Fund

E-mail: [email protected], phone 667 1800, Mustamäe Road 46, Tallinn 10621

The Court of Honour of the Estonian Bar Association resolves disputes arising from the client agreement between the consumer and the advocate in accordance with the conciliation procedure.

E-mail: [email protected], phone 662 0665, Rävala Blvd. 3, Tallinn 10143