Fake Reviews and Subscription Traps
- qedworks1
- May 15, 2023
- 2 min read
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill is a long title covering a lot of new rights for you (me) the customer!
This new law being considered by Parliament includes powers to tackle two scourges of the modern age - Fake Reviews and Subscription Traps! How many of you or people you know have fallen into elephant traps caused by small print, hidden dates and false information?
Tackling fake reviews
The legislation gives more power to ban the practice of facilitating fake reviews or advertising consumer reviews without taking reasonable steps to check they are genuine.
The Government says it recognised that online reviews are useful to consumers as they consider making a purchase, and to businesses in building their brand and reputation. However, the Government believes that “commissioned or incentivised reviews by consumers that are not clearly labelled and distinguishable as such can mislead consumers”. If enacted, the measures contained in the Bill would have clear consumer benefits. However, there would also be significant implications for all online businesses that host reviews, they would have to take “reasonable and proportionate” steps to verify that the reviews are genuine.
Subscription traps
And there will be a clamp down on so called “subscriptions traps” that harm consumers. Specifically , the new law includes a number of duties which will apply to traders in relation to “subscription contracts” which, in very broad terms and subject to certain exceptions, are fixed term contracts with auto-renewing or early cancellation features.
Those duties will include:
Pre-contract information: A requirement to provide certain “key pre-contract information” in clear and accessible language, including in respect of the contract term, frequency and amount of payments and cancellation rights.
Reminders: Issuing customers with reminders where, for example, a free trial or introductory offer is about to end or a subscription is about to auto-renew, unless the customer takes action to end the contract.
Cancellation rights: Giving consumers an easy and accessible way to cancel their subscription and a clear right to cancel during “cooling-off” periods.
Our new training course on all these and related provisions is now going through our pilot procedures. Get in touch for more details.
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