The European Dimension of Consumer Protection
The European Dimension of Consumer Protection

Summary/Abstract: One of the pillars of the legal regulation of consumer protection in Hungary is the fact that Hungary is a Member State of the European Union; therefore, it is natural to examine the European dimension of consumer protection. Consumer protection got relatively late into the focus of political and legal philosophy in Europe for two reasons: this delay is obvious when we consider similar processes in America, while on the other hand it is important to note that the Treaty of Rome, which created the European Economic Community in 1957, did not make any regulations on a common consumer protection policy. The emergence of consumer protection and the demand to have it regulated on a community basis are closely connected to the recognition that consumers play a vital role in economic life and in the establishment and operation of the single internal market. Should consumer protection not become a homogeneous practice within the EU and should consumers’ interests not be defended at the high level expected by the EU, then consumers’ trust, which is very changeable, may block the enforcement of a fundamental principle of the EU, namely the free movement of goods and services. Since debates of EU law’s interpretation and application fall into the scope of the Court of Justice of the European Union, it is important to know that the Court has had several cases over the past decades that have been more or less connected to consumer protection and the EU’s consumer protection policy. It is worth mentioning that although a large number of such cases are discussed by the Court on an international level, the Hungarian court practice does not seem to be that intense in terms of consumer protection cases, which may be explained by the relatively minor value of subject matters in consumer lawsuits and the lack of consumers’ information about this issue.

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