Consumer Rights Act 2015 Explanatory Notes

Background

372.When there is a breach or potential breach of consumer law, the measures available to public enforcers are limited and there is a lack of flexibility in the ways that they can achieve better outcomes for consumers and compliant businesses. The main formal sanction is a criminal prosecution of the trader by an enforcer. While this can benefit consumers as it prevents the spread of instances of illegal trading, in practice there is generally no direct remedy for victims of the breach.

373.As an alternative to criminal prosecution, certain enforcers can seek civil injunctive relief under Part 8 of the EA against infringements of consumer protection legislation. The key mechanism is an enforcement order. Through an enforcement order, a civil court can order that the infringer stop engaging in the conduct in question. It can also order that the infringer publish the enforcement order and a corrective statement, aiming to eliminate the continued effect of an infringement. Alternatively, a court or an enforcer may accept an undertaking from the business that they will not engage in conduct that involves an infringement. However, civil enforcement will not generally give remedies to individual consumers or secure positive action by businesses.

374.The Government’s response(39) to the consultation ‘Extending the Range of Remedies Available to Public Enforcers of Consumer Law’(40) sets out further information on the measures in this section. The response also confirms the Government’s intention that the new enhanced consumer measures should always be just, reasonable and proportionate and aimed at achieving one or more of the following:

• redress for consumers who have suffered loss from breaches of consumer law;

• improved compliance and a reduction in the likelihood of future breaches; and

• more information being provided to consumers so they can exercise greater choice and in doing so improve the functioning of the market for consumers and businesses generally.

375.Details of possible measures are not included in the legislation as this may risk taking away flexibility from the courts and enforcers of consumer law to identify the most suitable measure or measures to deal with a person subject to enforcement orders or undertakings. It may also take away the flexibility for a person who is subject to enforcement orders or undertakings to put forward their own measures, which could be deemed suitable, to the court or enforcer of consumer law.