InterAmÔ
Database
Journal Officiel de la République
française (
Consumer
Code (Regulatory Part – Council of State decrees)
Dernier texte modificateur signalé : Décret
n°2003-137 du 18 février 2003
With the participation of : Henri TEMPLE,
Director for the Consumer Law Research Centre –
Geoffrey WOODROFFE, Director for the Consumer Law Research Centre –
Brunel’s
CONSUMER CODE (Regulatory Part – Council of State decrees)
Volume I: Consumer information and contract
information
Part I
Consumer information
Chapter
II: Manner
of presentation and labelling
Article R112-1
In the sense of this chapter the following definitions
are used:
Foodstuff: any commodity, product or drink intended
for human use;
Pre-packaged foodstuff: the unit of sale constituted
by a foodstuff and the packaging in which it has been wrapped prior to its
presentation for sale, whether said packaging covers it entirely or partially
but in such a manner that the content cannot be modified without the packaging
being opened or modified;
Labelling: words, indications,
manufacturer’s brands or trademarks, images or signs relating to a foodstuff
and appearing on any accompanying packaging, document, notice, label, collar or
neck label or that refers to this foodstuff.
Article R112-2
Ingredient is understood to mean any substance,
including additives, used the manufacture or preparation of a foodstuff and
which is still present in the finished product, possibly in a modified form.
When a foodstuff ingredient has been processed from
several ingredients, the latters are considered to be ingredients of this
foodstuff.
Article R112-3
The following are not, however, considered to be
ingredients:
Components of an ingredient that, during the course of
the manufacturing process, may have been temporarily removed only to be
reincorporated later on in a quantity not exceeding the initial content;
Additives that are only present in a foodstuff due to
the fact that they are contained in one or more ingredients of this foodstuff
and provided that they do not play any further technological role in the
finished product;
Processing aids;
Substances used in the doses strictly required as
solvents or supports for additives and flavourings.
Article R112-4
Liquid medium is understood to mean the products
listed hereinafter, alone or in a mixture and also where they are presented in a
frozen or deep-frozen state, seeing as they are only secondary to the essential
components of the preparation, such as water, aqueous salt solutions, brines,
aqueous food acid solutions, vinegar, aqueous sugar solutions, aqueous
solutions of other substance or sweeteners, fruit or vegetable juices in the
case of fruit and vegetables.
Article R112-5
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
Batch is taken to mean a series of units of sale of a
foodstuff that has been produced, manufactured or packaged under practically
identical circumstances.
Article R112-6
It is prohibited to hold, with a view to the sale or
distribution free of charge, with a view to putting on sale, selling or
distributing free of charge, foodstuffs whose labelling or presentation do not
conform to the requirements of this chapter.
Article R112-7
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 1 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
The labelling and procedures according to which it is
produced must not be likely to create confusion in the minds of the purchaser
or the consumer, in particular, with regard to the foodstuff’s characteristics
and, more particularly, with regard to the nature, identity, qualities,
composition, quantity, durability, storage, origin or provenance, manufacturing
method or means by which it has been obtained.
The labelling must not include any wording likely to
lead to the belief that the foodstuff has special characteristics when all
similar foodstuffs possess these same characteristics.
Subject to the provisions applicable to foodstuffs, to a particular foods as well as to natural mineral waters,
the labelling of a foodstuff must not state properties of prevention, treatment
or healing of a human disease nor invoke these properties.
The aforementioned bans or restrictions also apply to
the presentation of foodstuffs, in particular in the form or appearance given
to the latter or to their packaging, to the packaging material used, to the
manner in which they are arranged as well as to the environment to which they
are exposed.
Article R112-8
All the labelling statements provided for by this
chapter must be easily understandable, written in Franc and be free of
abbreviations other than those provided for by regulations or international
conventions. The are written in an obvious place and
are clearly visible, legible and indelible. They must not, in any way, be
concealed, masked or separated by other indications or images.
Article R112-9
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 1 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
Without prejudice to provisions relating to
metrological testing, the labelling of pre-packaged foodstuffs involves, in
accordance with the conditions and subject to the exemptions provided for in
this chapter, the following obligatory wordings:
A sales description;
A list of ingredients;
The quantity of certain ingredients or categories of
ingredients, in accordance with the conditions provided for by articles R.
112-17 and R. 112-17-1;
The net quantity;
The date until which the foodstuff retains its
specific properties as well as an indication of special storage conditions;
The name or company name and address of the
manufacturer or packager or of a vendor established within the European
community;
An indication of the batch;
The place of origin or provenance every time that the
omission of this wording is likely to create confusion in the mind of the
purchaser over the actual origin or provenance of the foodstuff;
The method of use every time that the wording is
required for an appropriate use of the foodstuff as well as, where appropriate,
special conditions of use, in particular, precautions for use.
Article R112-9-1
Without prejudice to the provisions of article R.
112-9, the labelling of pre-packaged foodstuffs listed in this article involves
the following obligatory additional statements:
The alcoholic strength by volume for alcoholic drinks
over 1.2% proof ;
The words “packaged in a protective atmosphere” for
foodstuffs whose life has been prolonged by packaging gases authorised in
application of decree no. 89-674 of 18 September 1989 relating to additives
that may be used in foodstuffs for human consumption;
The words “with sweetener(s)” for foodstuffs
containing one or more of the sweeteners authorised in application of the
aforementioned decree of
The words “with sweetener(s)” for foodstuffs
containing both added sugar, or sugars, and one or more of the sweeteners
authorised in application of the aforementioned decree of 18 September 1989.
This wording must accompany the sales description as provided for in article R.
112-14;
The words “contains a source of phenylalanine” for
foodstuffs containing aspartame.
The words “excessive consumption may produce laxative
effects” for foodstuffs in which polyalcohols, authorised in application of the
aforementioned decree of
Other obligatory statements laid
down, where appropriate, by other regulatory provisions relating to certain
determined foodstuffs.
Article R112-10
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 4 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
Where pre-packaged foodstuffs are intended for
presentation to the final consumer, the statements provided for in articles R.
112-9 and R. 112-9-1 appear on the pre-packaging or on a label linked to the
latter. The statements listed in points 1, 4 and 5 of article R. 112-9 and
point 1 of article R. 112-9-1 are grouped together in the same field of vision.
For pre-packages whose largest surface has a surface
area of less than 10 square centimetres, as well as for glass bottles intended
for reuse, which are indelibly marked and which, because of this, do not have
any label, or collar or neck label, the labelling may only contain the
statements provided for in points 1, 4 and 5 of article R. 112-9.
Article R112-11
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 5Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
Where pre-packaged foodstuffs are marketed at a
stage prior to sale to the end consumer or where they are intended for delivery
to restaurants, hospitals, canteens and other similar institutions, hereinafter
known as “collectives”, in order to be prepared, processed, divided or split
therein, the statements provided for in article R. 112-9, with the exception of
the indication of batch, and those provided for in article R. 112-9-1 may only
appear on information sheets, delivery notes or commercial documents where the
latter accompany the foodstuffs to which they relate or where they have been
sent, prior to, or at the same time as, delivery.
These documents must be held at the place of use or
storage of the foodstuffs to which they relate. In this event, the statements
provided for in points 1, 5 and 6 of article R. 112-9 also appear on the
external packaging in which said foodstuffs are presented during marketing.
Article R112-12
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 6 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
In the case of mail-order sales, the catalogues,
brochures, prospectuses or notices informing the consumer of the products
offered for sale and enabling the latter to place a direct order must included
the statements provided for in points 1, 2, 4 and 8 of article R. 112-9 and in
point 7 of R. 112-9-1.
Article R112-13
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and other interested ministers fix, where
necessary, the practical procedures for applying articles R. 112-9 to R.
112-12, in particular, with regard to the use of conventional signs.
Article R112-14
The sales description of a foodstuff is that fixed by
current regulations on fraud prevention or, failing this, by other regulations
or by trading practice. In the absence of regulations or customary practices,
this description must consist of a description of the foodstuff and, if
necessary, of its use. The description must be accurate enough to enable the
purchaser to know its real nature and to distinguish it from product with which
it could be confused.
In any event, the sales description must be
independent of the trademark or manufacturer’s brand of the fancy name.
Every time that the omission of this information is
likely to cause confusion in the mind of the purchaser, the sales description
includes an indication of the physical state in which the foodstuff is to be
found or the specific processing treatment to which it has been subjected, such
as, in particular: in powdered form, freeze-dried, frozen, deep-frozen,
defrosted, pasteurised, sterilised, reconstituted, concentrated, smoked.
Article R112-14-1
Where the foodstuff was produced in another European
Community state, the trade name under which it is legally manufactured and
marketed in this state is also admissible.
If necessary, this trade name is accompanied by other
descriptive information which should appear in the proximity of the latter,
where the application of other provisions of this chapter, in particular, those
provided for by article R.112-9, is not likely to enable the consumer to know
the real nature of the foodstuff and to distinguish it from other foodstuffs
with which it may be confused.
Notwithstanding the provision of the first paragraph
of this article, this trade name is not admissible where the foodstuff that it
describes is so different, from the point of view of its composition or
manufacture, from the foodstuff known by this name in the national territory,
that the provisions of the previous paragraph are not sufficient to guarantee
the consumer correct information.
Article R112-15
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 7 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
The list of ingredients is constituted by the listing
of all the ingredients of the foodstuff in their descending order of weight at
the time of their use.
The following foodstuffs are exempt from giving an
indication of their ingredients:
Fresh fruit and vegetables, including potatoes, that
have not been peeled, sliced or subjected to any similar treatment;
Carbonated waters where the description highlights
this characteristic;
Fermentation vinegar coming exclusively from a single
basic product without the addition of any other ingredient;
Cheese, butter, fermented milks and creams, in so far
as the only thing added to these foodstuffs has been lactic products, enzymes and
cultures required for manufacture, or salt required for the manufacture of
cheeses other than fresh or processed cheeses;
Products only comprising one single
ingredient, provided that the sales description is identical to the name of the
ingredient or permits the nature of the ingredient to be determined without
risk of confusion.
(deleted).
Article R112-16
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and other interested ministers specify the
procedures for expressing the statements provided for in article R. 112-15, in
particular, with regard to multiple ingredients or those in mixtures,
ingredients used in concentrated or dehydrated form, added water or volatile
ingredients.
Article R112-17
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 7 Journal
officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
Without prejudice to provisions relating to the
nutrition labelling of foodstuffs, the labelling of a foodstuff must include an
indication of the quantity of an ingredients or of a category of ingredients
used in its manufacture or preparation in the following cases:
The relevant ingredient or category of ingredients
appears in the sales description or is generally associated with the sales
description by the consumer;
The relevant ingredient or category of ingredient is
highlighted in the labelling by words, images or graphic representation;
The relevant ingredient of category of ingredients is
essential in order to characterise the foodstuff and distinguish it from
products with which it may be confused in respect of its description or
appearance.
The wording provided for in the previous paragraph
either appears in the foodstuff’s sales description or in the immediate
proximity of this statement, or in the list of ingredients.
The quantity mentioned, expressed as a percentage,
corresponds to the quantity of the ingredient or ingredients at the time of
their use. Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs, the minister for
agriculture and other interested ministers may provide for derogations of this
principle for certain foodstuffs.
When a foodstuff has suffered moisture loss following
heat or other treatment, this quantity corresponds to the ratio expressed as a
percentage, between the quantity of the ingredient or
ingredients used and that of the finished product.
When, however, the quantity of an ingredient or the
total quantity of all the ingredients expressed in the labelling exceeds 100%
of the total quantity of the finished product after moisture loss, the
percentage is replaced by an indication of the weight or the ingredients used
to prepare 100 grams of the finished product.
The quantity of volatile ingredients is indicated
according to their overall weight prior to concentration or dehydration.
When these are concentrated or dehydrated foods to
which water must be added, the quantity of ingredients may be expressed
according to the overall weight in the reconstituted product.
Article R112-17-1
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 2 Journal
officiel of
The provisions of the previous article do not apply:
To an ingredient or category of ingredients:
Whose drained net weight is indicated in accordance
with article R. 112-20;
Whose quantity is already obliged to appear on the
labelling in application of European community regulations or regulatory
provisions resulting from the transposition of European community directives;
Used in low doses for flavouring purposes;
Which, whilst appearing in the sales description, is
not likely to determine the consumer’s choice seeing as the variation in
quantity is not essential for the characterisation of the foodstuff or likely
to distinguish its from other similar products;
When specific provisions contained in European
community regulations or resulting from the transposition of European community
directives, precisely determine the quantity of the ingredient or the category
of ingredients without provision being made for this to be indicated on the
label;
In the case of mixed fruits or vegetables or spices or
aromatic plants, where one is not significantly predominant in terms of weight.
In cases where the wording “sweetener(s)” or “with
sugar(s) and sweetener(s)” accompanies the sales description of a foodstuff, in
accordance with the provisions of article R. 112-9-1 (3 and 4);
To wording relating to the addition
of vitamins and minerals in cases where these substances are the subject of
nutrition labelling.
Article R112-18
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 11
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and other interested ministers may specify that
the description of certain foodstuffs be accompanied by the indication of a
particular ingredient.
Article R112-19
The indication of the net quantity of pre-packaged
foodstuffs is not obligatory for products whose net quantity is less than 5
grams or 5 millilitres, with the exception, however, of spices and aromatic
plants.
Article R112-20
When a foodstuff is presented in a liquid medium, the
drained net weight of this foodstuff is also indicated in the labelling.
Article R112-21
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and other interested ministers fix ways of
expressing quantity according to the nature of the foodstuffs or exempt certain
foodstuffs from this indication. These orders may also provided
for particular ways of expressing quantity in cases of mixed packaging or
pre-packaging.
Article R112-22
The labelling includes the inscription, for which the
packager is responsible, of a date until when the foodstuff retains its
specific properties under appropriate conditions.
In the case of foodstuffs that are highly
microbiologically perishable and which, because of this, are likely, after a
short period of time, to present an immediate danger to human health and in the
case of foodstuffs for which health control regulations fix a shelf life, this
date is a use-by date.
In other cases this date is a best-before date.
The date is, where appropriate, accompanied by an
indication of storage conditions, in particular, the temperature to be
respected, according to which it has been determined.
Article R112-23
The following foodstuffs are exempt from date
indication:
Fresh fruit or vegetables, including potatoes, that
have not been peeled, sliced or subjected to any similar treatment. This
exemption does not apply to sprouting grains and similar products such as
sprouting vegetables;
Wines, liqueur wines, sparkling wines, aromatic wines
and similar products obtained from fruits other than grapes;
Drinks covered by codes N.C. 2206.00.91, 2206.00.93
and 2206.00.99 of the (EEC) Council regulation no. 2658/87 of 23 July 1987
relating to the tariff and statistical nomenclature and the common customs
tariff and manufactured from grades or grape must;
Alcoholic drinks more than 10% proof;
Soft drinks, fruit juices, fruit nectars and alcoholic
drinks in individual containers in excess of 5 litres, intended for delivery to
institutions;
Bakery or patisserie products which, due to their very
nature, are consumed within twenty four hours of manufacture;
Vinegars;
Cooking salt;
Solid sugars;
Confectionery products consisting, almost uniquely, of
flavoured and/or coloured sugars;
Chewing gums and similar products for chewing;
Individual ice-creams.
Article R112-24
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and other interested ministers fix practical
procedures for indicating the dates mentioned in article R. 112-22.
Article R112-25
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 12
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
Without prejudice to the penalties provided for in
articles L. 213-1 to L. 213-4 and article 26 of decree no. 71-636 of 21 July
1971, holding with a view to sale, putting on sale, sale or distribution free
of charge of foodstuffs with a use-by date once this date has been exceeded, is
prohibited.
Holding with a view to sale, putting on sale, sale or
distribution free of charge of foodstuffs stored in conditions that do not
conform to those prescribed in their labelling is also prohibited.
Article R112-26
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 13
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and, When appropriate,
other relevant ministers fix the conditions for determining the alcoholic
strength by volume acquired, as well as practical procedures for indicating
said strength.
The provisions provided for in the previous paragraph
as well as in point 1 of article R. 112-9-1 do not apply to product subject to
the provisions of regulation no. 1627/86 of the Council of the European
communities of 6 May 1986 establishing rules for describing the alcoholic
strength by volume of special wines.
Article R112-27
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 14
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal officiel
of
Prior to being put on the market, foodstuffs, whether
pre-packaged or not, must be accompanied by an indication enabling the batch to
which they belong to be identified.
The batch indication is determined and affixed by the
producer, the manufacturer or the packager of the foodstuff, the latter being
responsible for said indication, or by the first established vendor within the
European community.
Article R112-28
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 15
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
The batch indication for pre-packaged foodstuffs
appears on the pre-packaging or on a label attached to the latter.
The batch indication for non pre-packaged foodstuffs
appears on the packaging or the container or, failing this, on related
commercial documents.
Article R112-29
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 16
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
The following foodstuffs are exempt from
indicating the batch:
Agricultural products which, when they leave the farm,
are:
either
sold or delivered to temporary storage, preparation or packaging stations;
are sent to
producers’ organisations;
are collected
with a view to their immediate use in a preparation or processing procedure;
Foodstuffs, presented at places of sale to the end
consumer, which:
are not
pre-packaged, included where they are subsequently packaged at the request of
the purchaser;
are
pre-packaged, with a view to their immediate sale;
Foodstuffs contained in packaging or containers where
the largest surface area is less than 10 centimetres squared;
Individual ice-creams.
The indication enabling the batch to be identified must appear on bundled
packages.
Article R112-30
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 17
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 4 Journal
officiel of
Orders issued by the minister for consumer affairs,
the minister for agriculture and, where appropriate, other interested ministers
fix the practical procedures for batch indication.
Article R112-31
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 18
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
Any other non pre-packaged foodstuff presented at
places of sale to the end consumer must itself be equipped with, or must appear
in close proximity, without risk of confusion, a poster, a notice or any other
appropriate means including the sales description in accordance with the
conditions provided for in articles R. 112-14 and R. 112-14-1, accompanied,
where appropriate, by the statements provided for in points 3 and 4 of article
R. 112-9-1.
Article R112-32
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 19
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
(Decree no. 2000-705 of 20 July 2000 art. 3 Journal
officiel of
With the exception of articles R. 112-27, R. 112-28
and R. 112-30, this chapter does not apply to labelling and product
presentation subject to the provisions of regulation no. 2392-89 of the Council
of the European Communities of 24 July 1989 establishing general rules for the
description and presentation of grape must as well as those subject to the
provisions of amended Council regulation no. 2333-92 of 13 July 1992
establishing general rules for the description and presentation of sparkling
wines and aerated sparkling wines.
With the exception of the provisions of article R.
112-7, this chapter no longer applies to labelling and presentation of products
subject to the provisions of amended regulation no. 1907/90 of
Article R112-33
(Decree no. 98-879 of 29 September 1998 art. 20
Journal officiel of 2 October 1998)
With regard to glass bottles for re-use and on which
one of the statements provided for in points 1 and 4 of article R. 112-9 and in
point 1 of article R. 112-9-1 is indicated indelibly, the obligation provided
for in article R. 112-11 to display these statements in the same field of
vision will only come into force on 1 July 1999.
Chapter
III: Price
and conditions of sale
Article R113-1
(Decree no. 99-513 of 16 June 1999 art. 1 Journal
officiel of 23 June 1999)
The sale of goods or products, or the provision of
service at fixed prices in violation of the decrees adopted in application of
article 1 of order no. 86-1243 of 1 December 1986 reproduced in article L.
113-1, or orders with the same objective adopted in application of order no.
45-1483 of 30 June 1945 and kept in force, as a transitional arrangement, by
article 61 of the order of 1 December 1986 mentioned above, appearing in the
annex to this code, is punishable by the fine laid down for petty offences
(fifth category).
The same penalties apply in the event of breach of the
orders provided for in article L. 113-3 fixing consumer information procedures
in respect of prices and special terms of sale as well as in the event of
breach of order with the same objective adopted in application of order no.
45-1483 of
In the event of repeat offence, the fines laid down
for repeated fifth category offences are applicable.
Chapter
IV: Information
on delivery dates
Article R114-1
(Decree no. 2001-95 of 2 February 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
Contracts concluded between professionals and
consumers relating to the sale of movable property or the supply of a service
provision where the agreed price is in excess of EUR 500 are subject to the
provisions of article L. 114-1 where the delivery of the goods or the supply of
the services is not immediate.
Chapter V: Development of products and services
Section 4: Certification of services and non-food
products
Sub-Section
1: Certifying bodies
Article R115-1
The declaration provided for in article L. 115-28 is
sent by the certifying body to the minister for industry, be recorded delivery
letter.
It is accompanied by a dossier establishing the
impartiality and competence of the certifying organisation, assessed with
respect to current regulations relating to certification organisations.
Article R115-2
The dossier mentioned in article R. 115-1 includes:
A description of the organisation’s activities, its structure,
its technical resources, its mode of funding as well as any links it may have
with manufacturers, importers or vendors of products or services to which the
certification which it is offering to implement relates;
Its articles of association, its rules of procedure,
the names and positions of directors responsible for certification and members
of the board or similar body;
A list of products or services that the organisation
proposes to certify, a description of the methods or procedures that will be
used to compile and validate the benchmarks used by the organisation for the
certification and procedures for presenting the certification;
General rules relating to the issue and monitoring of
the used of the certification;
The measures provided for in respect of professionals
who may use their certification contrary to the provisions of articles L.
115-27 and L. 115-28;
The methods that the certifying body proposes to use
to monitor the products or services that its certifies, the distribution of
responsibility within the organisation as well as the competence of personnel
charged with certification;
Procedures for managing documents
relating to certification and to complaints.
Article R115-3
If the declaration includes the documents listed in
article R. 115-2 hereinabove, the minister for industry acknowledges receipt be
means of a recorded delivery letter, within fifteen days of receiving the
dossier.
If the declaration dossier is incomplete, the minister
for industry, within fifteen days of receiving the dossier, invites the body,
by recorded delivery letter, to supply the additional documents in accordance
with the conditions provided for by article R. 115-1. When these documents have
been produced, the first paragraph of this article applies.
Article R115-4
Any modification of one of the components of the
dossier provided for in article R. 115-2 must be the subject of a declaration
in the same forms and must give rise to an acknowledgement of receipt in
accordance with the terms provided for in article R. 115-3.
Article R115-5
The list of declared certifying bodies is published
and regularly updated, in the form of a notice appearing in the Journal
officiel de la République française. This publication, which is not valid
as official acceptance, is not binding for the government.
Article R115-6
The impartiality and competence of a certifying body
may be established by a document issued to this end by an accreditation
authority, acknowledged by joint order of the minister for consumer affairs and
minister for industry.
In this event, the dossier accompanying the
declaration provided for by article R. 115-1 can only included the components
cited in points 1, 2 and 3 of article R. 115-2.
Article R115-7
Only independent, impartial and competent
organisations conforming to existing international standards, disposing of
adequate technical and financial resources and made up in a balanced way such
as to represent all the interests concerned by the certification, without
predominance of one over the other, can be recognised as accreditation
authorities.
Article R115-8
Benchmarks must, in accordance with the conditions
given in point 3 of article R. 115-2, be drafted and validated in consultation
with representatives of the various interested parties and, in particular,
associations or bodies representing professionals, associations or bodies
representing consumers and users, as well as relevant government departments.
When this relates to documents drafted unilaterally,
they must at least be validated by representatives of the aforementioned
various interested parties.
The organisation of said consultation and validation
lies with the certifying body which is obliged to bring together all the
partners involved, in adhering to the undertakings given in accordance with the
provisions of point 3 of article R. 115-2.
Article R115-9
Each benchmark defines its own field of application
and includes:
The characteristics used to describe the products or
services to be monitored, the limiting value of characteristics that may be
required for certification and procedures used to categorise these products or
these services in line with their characteristics;
The nature and means of presenting information
considered to be essential and that must be brought to
the attention of users and consumers;
Trial, measuring, analytical, test or evaluation
methods used to determine the certified characteristics and which, as far as
possible, must refer back to existing officially approved standards;
The checking procedures used by the certifying body
and those that the manufacturers, importers, retailers of products or services
to which the certification relates undertake to carry out.
Where appropriate, undertakings given by manufacturers
or service providers concerning installation conditions for products or for the
performance of certified services, after-sales service conditions and those
relating to the reparation of damages caused to users and consumers for
non-conformance of the product or service with the certified characteristics.
Sub-Section
4: Consumer
and user information
Article R115-10
When reference is made to the certifications in
advertising, labelling or display of any product or service or on related
business documents of any kind, the consumer or user must compulsorily be made
aware of the following:
The name or company name of the certifying body or its
collective certification mark, as well as its address;
Identification of the benchmark serving as a basis for
the certification;
Characteristics certified as being essential and
presented in accordance with the conditions provided for in point 2 of article
R. 115-9.
Article R115-11
Validated benchmarks are published in the form of a
notice in the Journal officiel de la République.
This publication includes the name and address of the
certifying body, accurate identification of the product or the service in
question as well as the essential components of the benchmark and, in particular,
the certified characteristics being checked.
These benchmarks held at the disposal of the general
public by the certifying body, in accordance with the conditions provided for
by the fourth paragraph of article L. 115-28.
Sub-Section 5:
Criminal provisions
Article R115-12
The act, by any person responsible for marketing a
product or any service provision, that makes reference to the certification of
this product or service, of failing to include in the advertising, labelling or
presentation of the latter, one of the statements or indications provided for
in article R. 115-10, is punishable by the penalties provided for petty
offences (fifth category).
Part II
Commercial practice
Section
2: Distance
selling
Article R121-1
(Decree n°2003-137 of 18 February 2003, article 1, Official journal of
20 February 2003)
The violation of the provisions of article L121-18 shall be punished by
the fines laid down for petty offences of the fifth category.
Article R121-1-1
The violation of the provisions of article L111-19 shall be punished by
fines laid down for petty offences of the fifth category.
Article R121-1-2
The refusal of the seller to refund (the price), according to the terms
fixed in article L121-20-1, of the goods returned by the buyer, when the latter
is entitled to withdraw, shall be punished by the fines laid down for petty
offences of the fifth category.
Article R121-2
(Decree n° 2003-137 of 18 February, article 1, Official Journal of 20
February 2003)
I - In case of repetition of offences provided for in articles R 121-1,
R121-1-1 and R121-1-2, the fines laid down for
repetition of petty offences of the fifth class shall apply.
II - The legal persons may be held responsible for the offences provided for in
articles R121-1, R121-1-1 and R121-1-2 according to the terms provided for in
article 121-2 of the Penal Code. They face the fines according to the
conditions provided for in article 131-41 of the same code.
Article R121-3
The detachable form intended to facilitate use of the
withdrawal option provided for in article L. 121-25 forms part of the copy of
the contract left with the customer.
It must be able to be easily separated.
The following statement must appear on the copy of the
contract:
“If you cancel your order, you can use the detachable
form attached hereto”
Article R121-4
The form provided for in article L. 121-24 includes,
on one side, the full and exact address to which it must be sent.
Sending said form to this address within the seven day
deadline provided for in article L. 121-25 has the effect of cancelling the
order without the vendor being able to invoke an error in the wording of said
address, as it appears on the detachable form, or the fact that the receipt for
the dispatch required by article L. 121-25 for the cancellation of the
contract, was not signed by an authorised signatory, at this address.
Article R121-5
The form provided for in article L. 121-24 includes,
on the reverse, the following statements in clearly legible characters:
At the top, the words “Contract cancellation” (in bold
letters), followed by the reference “Consumer code, articles L. 121-23 to L.
121-26”;
Then, under the heading “Conditions”, the following
instructions, listed on separate lines:
“Complete and sign this form”;
“Send it by recorded delivery mail” (these words must
be underlined or must appear in bold);
“Send it to the address appearing on the reverse”;
“Post it, at the latest, on the seventh day after the
date of the order or, if this deadline would normally expire on a Saturday,
Sunday or bank holiday or non-working day, on the next working day” (underlined
and in bold);
And, after a space, the phrase:
“I, the undersigned, hereby declare the order
appearing hereinafter to be cancelled “, followed by the following pieces of
information, one on each line:
“Nature of the goods or services ordered…”
“Order date”.
“Customer name”.
“Customer address”.
Finally, clearly shown, the words:
“Customer signature”.
Article R121-6
The seller must only include the statements provided
for in articles R. 121-4 and R. 121-5, in the form, as well as references of an
accounting nature.
Section
5: Sales or
services with free gifts
Article R121-8
(Decree no. 2001-95 of 2 February
2001 art. I Journal officiel of
The maximum value of samples, objects and services
referred to in the second paragraph of article L. 121-35 is determined in line
with the net sale price, inclusive of tax, of the products, goods or services
to which the sale relates in accordance with the following terms: 7% of the net
price defined hereinabove if the latter is less than or equal to EUR 80; EUR 5
plus 1% of the net price defined hereinabove if the latter is in excess of EUR
80.
This value must not, under any circumstances, exceed
EUR 60 and shall be understood to be ex factory and inclusive of tax for
objects produced in
Article R121-9
The following are not considered as free gifts:
The product’s customary packaging, goods, products or
service provisions essential for the normal use of the product, goods or
services being sold;
After-sale service provisions and parking facilities
offered by traders to their customers;
Services provided free of charge if said services are
not ordinarily the subject of a fee-paying contract and are devoid of market
value.
Article R121-10
The objects mentioned in article R. 121-8 must be
clearly and indelibly marked with the name the brand name, the distinguishing
abbreviation or logo of the person involved in the publicity exercise.
The samples referred to in the same article must bear
the wording: “Free sample not for resale”, written in a legible and indelible
manner, clearly displayed.
Section
6: Lottery
and sweepstake avdvertising
Article R121-11
When documents introducing a written advertising
operation likely to engender hopes of winning, by means of the random selection
of participants, include the following components or some of these components:
Order form;
Extracts from a regulation;
Presentation of lots;
Entry form or slip;
these components
must each appear in a separate Section bearing the clearly marked headings
given above which correspond to the purpose of the document, to the exclusion
of any other wording.
Article R121-12
The lots brought into play and appearing in the list
provided for in article L. 121-37 are given in order of value.
Article R121-13
(Decree no. 99-513 of 16 June 1999 art. 3 Journal
officiel of 23 June 1999)
The following are punishable by the fines laid down
for petty offences (fifth category):
Sales or sale offers, service provisions or offers of
these service provisions made with free gifts to consumers or purchasers, prohibited
by article L. 121-35;
Refusals or rendering subject to conditions, of sales
or service provisions, prohibited by article L. 122-1;
Breaches of rules on the value of samples fixed in
article R. 121-8;
Breaches of rules on the marking of advertising objects
defined in article R. 121-10.
In the event of a repeat offence, the fines laid down
for repeated petty offences (fifth category) apply.
Chapter II: Illegal business practices
Section
2: Unsolicited goods
and services
Article R122-1
Rules relating to the prohibition of unsolicited
postal sales are defined by article R. 635-2 of the French penal code
reproduced hereinafter:
“Art. R. 635-2:
“The act of sending a person, without prior request
from the latter, any object whatsoever accompanied by correspondence indicating
that this object may be accepted for payment of a fixed price or returned to
its sender, even if said object can be returned without cost for the addressee,
is punishable by the fine laid down for petty offences (fifth category).
“Persons guilty of the contravention provided for in
this article shall also incur the following additional penalties:
A ban, for a period of three years at the most, on
issuing cheques other than those which permit the withdrawal of funds by the
drawer from the drawee or those which are certified;
The confiscation of the thing which
served or was intended to commit the offence or of the thing which is the
resultant product.
“Legal persons may be declared criminally liable, in
accordance with the conditions provided for by article 121-2, for the offence
defined in this article.
“The penalties incurred by legal persons are:
“1. A fine, in accordance with the procedures provided
for by article 131-41;
“2. A ban, for a period of three years at the most, on
issuing cheques other than those which permit the withdrawal of funds by the
drawer from the drawee or those which are certified;
“3. The confiscation of the thing
which served or was intended to commit the offence or of the thing which is the
resultant product.
“A repeat of the contravention provided for in this
article is repressed in accordance with articles 132-11 and 132-15”.
Part III: General contractual provisions
Chapter II: Unfair terms
Section
1: Consumer protection
against unfair terms
Article R132-1
In sale contracts concluded between professionals, on
the one hand, and non-business or consumers, on the other, clauses with the
aim, or effect, of cancelling or reducing the right to reparation of the
business or consumer in the event of non-fulfilment by the business of any one
of its obligations, are prohibited as abusive in the sense of paragraph 1 of
article L. 132-1.
Article R132-2
In contracts concluded between businesses and
non-business or consumers, clauses with the aim, or effect, of reserving the
business the right to unilaterally amend the characteristics of the goods to be
delivered or the service to be rendered, are prohibited.
It may, however, be stipulated that the business may
make modifications relating to technical changes, provided that there is no
resultant price increase nor alteration in quality and that the clause reserves
the right of the non-business or consumer to mention the characteristics to
which his undertaking is subject.
Section
2: The unfair
terms commission
Article R132-3
The unfair terms commission, instituted by article L.
132-2, includes thirteen members, divided up as follows:
A member of the national legal service, chair;
Two legal or administrative magistrates or members of
the Council of State;
Two entities qualified in contract law or technique,
selected on the advice of the Conseil national de la consommation;
For professionals’ representatives;
Four business representatives.
A vice-chair, appointed by virtue of point 2, is
designated.
The office of Government commissioner is performed by
the director general for competition, consumer protection and fraud prevention
or his/her representative.
Article R132-4
The chair and the commission members are appointed by
order of the minister for consumer affairs for a renewable three year term of
office. This order designates a deputy for each regular member apart from the
chair. Magistrates are appointed at the proposal of the Keeper of the Seals,
Ministry for Justice.
No commission member may deliberate on a matter in
which he/she has a direct and personal interest or if he/she is representing,
or has represented, one of the interested parties.
The commission is assisted by a secretary general and
by one or more permanent reporters provided by the minister for consumer
affairs. In addition, special reporters may be appointed by the chair on the
basis of their skills.
Article R132-5
The commission sits in plenary session or in one or
more restricted formations comprising the chair or the vice-chair and
commission members designated to this effect by the chair.
The chair divides cases that he does not intend to
reserve for plenary session between the restricted formations. He divides, with
the secretary general, cases between reporters.
Commission members and reporters may hear any person
likely to provide information on cases referred to them and may ask for any
document required for the completion of their task to be sent to them.
Sessions are not public. The interested parties may
ask for a hearing prior to the debate apart from where a judicial referral is
being examined. In the event of votes being equal, the chair shall have the
casting vote.
Any regular member who fails to attend three
consecutive meetings, without a legitimate reason, is considered to have
resigned.
The commission establishes its rules of procedure
which, in particular, defines the physical procedures for admissibility of
referrals other than those of a judicial origin. This regulation is published
in the Official bulletin on competition, consumer protection and fraud
prevention.
Article R132-6
The commission may be asked for its opinion where,
upon the occasion of proceedings, the unfair nature of a contractual term is
alleged.
The competent judge asks the commission, by decision
not open to appeal, for its opinion on the unfair nature of this term as
defined by article L. 132-1. The opinion is not binding for the judge.
The commission makes known its opinion within a
maximum of three months from the referral.
Any decision on the substance of the case is deferred
until the commission’s opinion has been received or, failing this, until the
expiry of the aforementioned three month deadline. Urgent or interim measures
may be adopted.
Chapter
IV: Provision of standard
form contracts
Article R134-1
Professional service providers or vendors shall be
punished by fines provided for petty offences (5th category) for
failing to send a copy of their standard agreements to any interested person
who has made a request for same.
In the event of a repeat offence, fines laid down for
repeated petty offences (5th category) apply.
Part IV: Agent’s powers and jurisdictional proceedings
Chapter I: Special provisions relating to the
agent’s powers and jurisdictional proceedings
Article R141-1
Rules relating to reports provided for in article 46
of order no. 86-1243 of
“Art. 31:
“The reports provided for in article 46 of order no.
86-1243 of
Article R141-2
Rules relating to the reports provided for in article
48 of order no. 86-1243 of
“Art. 32:
“The reports provided for in article 48 of order no.
86-1243 of
Reports are signed by investigators, by the occupant
of the premises or his/her representative as well as by the judicial police
officer charged with attending these operations.
One copy of the report and the inventory is given to
the occupant of the premises or to his/her representative. These papers and
documents cannot be cited against to interested parties until after their
return or once the interested parties have been able to familiarise themselves
with said papers and documents.
Chapter
II: Simplified
civil procedures (small claims)
Article R142-1
Civil disputes born of the application of this code
are covered, where the amount of the claim does not exceed the rate of
jurisdiction ruling in last resort of the tribunal d’instance
, by rule relating to the
simplified referral to the tribunal d’instance fixed by articles 847-1
and 847-2 of the French new code of civil procedure reproduced hereinafter:
- Art. 847-1: “When the amount of the claim does not
exceed the rate of jurisdiction ruling in last resort of the tribunal
d’instance, the matter may be referred to said
court by a declaration made, submitted or addressed to the office of the clerk
to the court where it is registered.
The declaration must indicate the name, forenames,
profession and address of the parties or, for legal entities, their company
name and registered office and must specify the purpose of the claim.
The period of limitation and deadlines for taking
action are interrupted by registration of the declaration.
Art. 847-2:
The parties are called to the hearing by the clerk to
the court by recorded delivery letter. On the same day the clerk sends a copy
of this invitation by ordinary mail. The claimant may also be called verbally
against a signature.
The invitation to attend sent to the counsel for the
defence is valid as a summons. It states that, should the defendant fail to
attend, he/she risks having a judgement made against him/her based solely on
the information supplied by his/her adversary. A copy of the declaration is
annexed to the invitation to attend”.
Article R142-2
Civil disputes born of the application of this code
are the subject of the procedure defined by articles 1425-1 to 1425-9 of the
new code of civil procedure reproduced hereinafter:
“Art. 1425-1:
The performance in kind of an obligation born of a
contract concluded between persons, not all of whom are traders, may be
requested at the tribunal d’instance where the value of the service
provision, performance of which is requested, does not exceed the competence of
this jurisdiction.
Art. 1425-2:
The claim is referred, at the applicant’s choice,
either before the tribunal d’instance at the place where the
counsel for the defence resides, or before the tribunal d’instance in
the place where the obligation is to be performed.
Art. 1425-3:
“The application is formed by means of an application
lodged with, or addressed to, the office of the clerk to the court by the
beneficiary of the obligation or by the persons mentioned in article 828.
The application contains:
For natural persons, the name, forenames, profession
and address of the parties or, for legal persons, their company name and their
registered office;
A precise indication of the nature of the obligation,
performance of which is sought, as well as the grounds upon which this is
based;
It is accompanied by documentary evidence.
The period of limitation and deadlines for taking
action are interrupted by the registration of the application with the clerk’s
office.
Art. 1425-4:
If, in view of the documents produced, the judged
believes the application to have just cause, the latter gives a ruling issuing
an injunction to do that is not open to appeal.
It fixes the purpose of the obligation as well as the
time and conditions under which the latter must be performed.
In addition, the order mentions the place, date and
time of the hearing at which the case will be examined,
unless the applicant has made it known that the injunction has been enforced.
Art. 1425-5:
The clerk notifies the parties of the order, by
recorded delivery letter. On the same day the latter sends a copy of this notification
by ordinary mail. The notification letter mentions the provisions of articles
1425-7 and 1425-8.
Art. 1425-6:
The order containing the injunction to do and the
application is kept in its original draft at the registry which temporarily
retains the documents submitted in support of the application.
Art. 1425-7:
Where the injunction to do has been enforced within
the appointed deadlines, the applicant informs the clerk. The case is removed
from the roll.
Failing receipt of this information and if the
applicant does not appear at the hearing without just cause, the court declares
the injunction to do procedure null and void.
The declaration of nullity may be revoked if the
applicant notifies the clerk within fifteen days of the legitimate reason for
being unable to invoke the latter in due time. In this case, the parties are
called to a further hearing.
Art. 1425-8:
The court, in the event of total, or partial, failure
to enforce the injunction to do that it has issued,
rules on the application, after having attempted to reconcile the parties.
It includes, within the bounds of
jurisdiction based on the ratione materiae, the initial application and all
incidental applications and defence as to the merits of the case.
In the event of a decision of lack of competence, the case is referred
before the competent court in accordance with the rules provided for in article
97.
Art. 1425-9:
If the judge rejects the application, the applicant cannot appeal
against the decision, unless the latter takes action under common law. The
application and the documents produced are returned to the applicant”.
Volume II: Quality of products and services
Part I: Conformity
Chapter I: General provisions
Section 2: Provisions relating to contractual guarantee
Article R211-1
The provisions of articles R. 211-2 and R. 211-3 apply
to written documents recording contracts concluded between business and non-
business or consumers and concerning the guarantee and after-sales service for
equipment placed on a list fixed by order of the ministers for consumer
affairs, for justice, for industry, for trade and the craft industry.
Article R211-2
Presentation of written documents must conform to the
table annexed to this code and all of the headings must be completed.
Article R211-3
Anyone who contravenes the provisions of article R.
211-2 will be punished by the fine laid down for petty offences (third
category).
Article R211-4
In contracts concluded between business, on the one
hand, and, on the other hand, non-business or consumers, the business cannot
contractually guarantee the item to be delivered or the service to be rendered
without clearly stating that, whatever the circumstances, the legal guarantee
obliging the business seller to cover the purchaser against any consequences of
faults or hidden defects in the item being sold or the service being rendered,
applies.
Article R211-5
Business who have
inserted a clause drafted in contravention of the provisions of article R.
211-4 into a contract concluded with a non-business or consumer, will be
punished by the fine laid down for petty offences (fifth category).
Chapter II: Powers of investigation
Section 1: Authorised authorities
Article R215-1
The offences referred to in articles L. 213-1 to L.
216-9 are researched and investigated in accordance with provisions appearing
in this chapter and in chapter VI. These provisions do not pose an obstacle to
proof of said offences being established by means of common law procedures.
Section
2: Investigation
and report
Article R215-2
The officials and agents listed in L. 215-1 carry out
elementary checks with the aim of identifying merchandise or revealing any
non-conformity in respect of the characteristics that they should possess. They
compile reports of their findings. They may attach thereto, packaging or
labelling specimens as well as a sample of the merchandise intended to serve as
items produced in evidence. The quantity of the product rendered unusable is
the subject of the reimbursement procedure provided for in article R. 215-9.
They may, in addition, take samples and make seizures
in accordance with the conditions fixed by the articles given below.
Article R215-3
Members of the police force are obliged, if necessary,
to give assistance for investigations, samples or seizures to the agents
mentioned in article L. 215-1.
Transport operators are obliged not to obstruct
requisitions for sample taking and for seizures and to represent the permits,
way bills, receipts, bills of lading and declarations that they hold.
The various public administrations are obliged to give
the agents mentioned in article L. 215-1 the information required for the
completion of this task.
Article R215-4
Apart from in the cases provided for in articles R.
215-12 to R. 215-14 any sample taken includes three separate samples, one for
the laboratory for analysis, the other two possibly intended for experts.
Article R215-5
All sampling results, a meeting having been held, in
the drafting, on unstamped paper, of a report comprising the following
information:
The name, forenames, position and residence of the
reporting officer;
The date, time and place where the sample was taken;
The name, forenames, profession and
domicile or residence of the person on whose premises the sample was taken.
If the sample took place on the highway, the names and domiciles of the persons
appearing on the way bills or bills of lading as senders and addressees;
The number of the sample order;
The signature of the reporting
officer.
Article R215-6
The report mentioned in the previous article must, in
addition, contain a brief description of the circumstances under which the
sample was taken, must relate the marks and labels affixed to envelopes or
containers, the size of the batch of merchandise from which the sample was
taken as well as all information deemed to be necessary to establish the
authenticity of the samples taken, the identity of the merchandise and the
exact name under which the latter was held or put on sale.
The proprietor or holder of the merchandise or, where
appropriate, the transport company representative may, in addition, have any
statements that it deems useful inserted into the report. The latter is invited
to sign the report and, in the event of refusal, this is mentioned by the
reporting officer.
The report also shows the number with which it is
registered upon receipt by the administrative department.
Article R215-7
Samples must be taken in such a way that the three
samples are, as far as possible, identical.
To this end, orders issued by the minister for
economic affairs and finance, adopted at the proposal of the commission
referred to in article R. 551-1, may determine, for each product or piece of
merchandise, the quantity to be sampled, the procedures to be used to obtain
uniform samples, as well as precautions to be taken for the transportation and
storage of samples.
Article R215-8
Any sample taken is placed under seal. These seals
have an identifying label bearing, in particular, the following information:
The name under which the
product is either held with a view to being sold, put on sale or sold;
The date, time and place where the sample was taken;
The name, company name and address of the person on
whose premises the sample was taken. If the sample is taken on the highway, the
names and addresses of the senders and addressees;
The sample order number;
The number with which the samples are registered upon
receipt by the administrative department;
The signature of the reporting
officer.
Article R215-9
Soon after having sealed the samples, the reporting
officer, if he/she is in the presence of the proprietor or holder of the
merchandise, must formally notify the latter of the declared value of the
samples taken. The proprietor or holder may provide proof of this value with
the aid of his/her accounting documents.
The report mentions the value declared by the
proprietor or holder and, should the reporting officer believe this value to be
exaggerated, the estimate made by this agent.
A receipt detached from
counterfoil book is handed to the proprietor or holder of the
merchandise. This includes a description of the nature and quantities of
samples taken, the declared value and, in the case provided for in the
paragraph above, the estimate made by the agent.
In the event of sampling during transit, the transport
company representative receives a receipt for his/her discharge indicating the
nature and quantity of the merchandise sampled as well as the value estimated
by the agent.
Article R215-10
One of the samples is left for the proprietor or
holder of the product. If the latter refuses to store said sample in the depot,
this refusal is mentioned in the report.
It must not, under any pretext, modify the state of
the sample assigned to it. The guarantee measures that may be imposed, to this
end, will be fixed by one of the ministerial orders provided for in article R.
215-7.
Article R215-11
The report and samples, with the exception of the one
that the proprietor or holder of the product has been able to store in the
depot, are immediately sent, by the reporting officer, to the prefecture of the
department where the sample was taken and, within the jurisdiction of the Préfecture
de police, to the préfet de police.
If this relates to samples taken for comparison with
other samples taken previously, the report and the samples are sent by the
reporting officer to the government department under whose jurisdiction the
initial sample was taken.
Ministerial orders may authorising
the sending of samples to sub-prefectures or to any other administrative
department.
The administrative department that receives this
deposit registers it, lists the entry number on the report and the label on
each sample attached to this report. As soon as possible it sends one of these
samples to the competent laboratory. Samples for comparison must be sent to the
same laboratory.
The other sample or, in the case provided for by the
first paragraph of article R. 215-10, the two other samples are retained by the
prefecture.
If the nature of the commodities or products does,
however, require special storage procedures, the samples are sent to the
laboratory, where measures are taken in accordance with the orders provided for
by article R. 215-7.
Article R215-12
(Decree no. 99-513 of 16 June 1999 art. 4 I Journal
officiel of 23 June 1999)
In the case of the alterable products mentioned in
article L. 215-15, a receipt submitted to the proprietor or holder of the
object under the conditions provided for by article R. 215-9 mentions the value
of the quantity of product rendered unusable.
The product placed under seals is deposited by the
agent in a place suitable, as far as possible, for its storage. It may be left
in the care of its proprietor or holder.
In view of the possible expert survey provided for in
article L. 215-15, the reporting officer invites the proprietor or holder of
the object to choose an expert and a replacement expert from the official
lists, or to refer to a sole expert appointed by the juge d’instruction.
The reporting officer notes, as soon as possible, in a
report, all the circumstances likely to justify the start of preliminary
investigation, as well as statements from the proprietor or holder of the
object relating to the expert survey. This report is sent to the procureur
de la République .
A copy is sent to the préfet.
Article R215-13
(Decree no. 99-513 of 16 June 1999 art. 4 II Journal
officiel of 23 June 1999)
In the cases provided for in article L. 215-15 where
three samples cannot be taken from the object or merchandise, the object of
merchandise is placed under seals in its entirety. The report and the object or
merchandise are sent to the procureur de la
République. The object or the merchandise may, however, be left on deposit
with its proprietor or holder. The formalities required by the three final
paragraphs of article R. 215-12 are carried out.
Article R215-14
In respect of checks on bacteriological or biological
purity, only one sample is taken.
The sample is immediately forwarded by the reporting
officer to one of the laboratories competent for the purposes of
bacteriological studies.
The report is sent to the préfet in accordance
with the rules fixed by article R. 215-11.
Article R215-15
In the event of non-suit or relaxe, reimbursement
of the value of the samples is made in accordance with the terms provided for
by article R. 215-21, apart from where it is stated, by the order of non-suit
or by the relaxe, that the product was falsified, adulterated or toxic.
Section 3: Emergency
measures
Article R215-16
Agents witnessing a flagrant act of falsification,
fraud or putting on sale of adulterated or toxic products are obliged to open
an inquiry immediately. A report is compiled to this end and the reporting
agent records, with the statements provided for in article R. 215-5 and R.
215-6, all the circumstances likely to establish before the judicial authority
the value of the investigations carried out.
This report is sent by the agent within twenty four
hours to the procureur de la République.
A copy is sent to the préfet
.
Article R215-17
The seized products are placed under seal and sent to
the procureur de la République at the same time as the report. If it
proves impossible to dispatch them immediately, they are left for storage by
the interested part or, subject to the refusal of the latter, in a place
selected by the reporting official.
Section 4: Analysis
Article R215-18
(Decree no. 99-1233 of 31 December
1999 art. I Journal officiel of 4 January 2000)
The competence of each government laboratory allowed
to analyse or test samples is fixed by an order issued by the minister for
economic affairs and finance. Where the government laboratory comes under the
jurisdiction of another minister, the order is adopted jointly by this minister
and the minister for economic affairs and finance.
Article R215-18-1
Laboratories other than those provided for in article
R. 215-18 may be accepted for analysis or testing, subject to being approved.
The minister for economic affairs and finance fixes by order the conditions for
approval of laboratories that supply proof of their aptitude to carry out
analyses or tests in accordance with current regulations and that offer
guarantees in terms of confidentiality, impartiality and independence in
respect of any company or group of companies performing a production,
importation or marketing activity for products
or goods within the analytical domain for which the approval is sought. It
grants approval by order.
Approved laboratories are subject, at any time, to
monitoring of adherence to the terms of the approval, on the basis of documents
and on the spot, by the directorate-general for competition, consumer
protection and fraud prevention.
Where the laboratory does not fulfil one or more of
the conditions required for approval, it must inform the director general for
competition, consumer protection and fraud prevention of this without delay. In
the event of non-adherence to the conditions required for approval, the
minister for economic affairs and finance may suspend or withdraw the approval.
Article R215-18-2
Where the laboratories mentioned in articles R. 215-18
and R. 215-18-1 cannot perform, due to their exceptionally specialist nature or
due to extreme urgency, the analyses or test, the government laboratory that
normally deals with the product in question uses, under its supervision, a
laboratory that is in a position to provided the services required, or secures
the assistance of an expert of its choice.
Article R215-19
Laboratories must use the methods indicated by the
commission referred to in article R. 551, where these exist, for the
examination of samples.
These methods are described in detail by orders issued
by the minister for economic affairs and finance or, if the matter relates to
government laboratories under the jurisdiction of another minister, by joint
orders issued by the minister for economic affairs and finance and the relevant
minister, adopted upon the advice of this commission.
Laboratories may, however, employ other additional
methods and their managers may secure the assistance of any specialist of their
choice.
Analyses are both qualitative and quantitative.
Article R215-20
(Decree no. 99-1233 of 31 December
1999 art. I Journal officiel of 4 January 2000)
The government laboratory, mentioned in article R.
215-18 compiles, as soon as its work is complete, or as soon as the results of
analyses or tests assigned to laboratories allowed to proceed with the expert
survey by virtue of articles R. 215-18-1 and R. 215-18-2 are received, a report
in which the results of the examination and analyses to which this sample has
been subjected are recorded and interpreted.
Where a laboratory covered by articles R. 215-18-1 or
R. 215-18-2 is called upon, its analyses and test reports are attached to the
government laboratory report.
The government laboratory report is sent to the préfet
of the department where said sample comes from.
Article R215-21
Should the laboratory report show that the sample
conforms to the characteristics to which the product should adhere, the préfet,
in the absence of any other piece of information likely to constitute an
allegation of fraud, notify the proprietor or holder of the product of this
without delay.
In this event, the value of the samples taken is paid
automatically.
Article R215-22
Should the laboratory report show that the sample does
not conform to the characteristics to which the product should adhere, the
directorate for competition, consumer affairs and fraud prevention, after all
necessary additional inquiries, constitutes the dossier in consideration of all
the information at its disposal.
This dossier is sent by the préfet to the procureur
de la République .
If it relates to products that are subject to regulations appertaining to
indirect contributions, an opinion must be given by the préfet to the
director of the department’s tax services.
Article R215-23
In respect of bacteriological or biological purity
checks, should the laboratory report show that the product, although not
conforming to the characteristics to which its should adhere, is not toxic, the
préfet arranges, as soon as possible, for
a copy of the laboratory report to be submitted to the proprietor or holder of
the product by the directorate for competition, consumer protection and fraud
prevention. It invites the proprietor or holder to take all necessary measures
to remedy the non-conformity and informs the latter that a second sample of the
product will be taken at a later date. There must be a minimum of eight days
and a maximum of one month between the notification of these observations and
the second sampling.
If the analysis performed subsequent to this second
sampling once again reveals that the sample does not comply with regulatory requirements,
the préfet sends the procureur de la République the
dossier comprising, in particular, the two sampling reports and the two
laboratory reports, as well as all the information gathered by the directorate
for competition, consumer protection and fraud prevention
The proprietor or holder of the product is informed by
the procureur de la République that it may have access to the
file, that a third sample likely to motivate the institution of legal
proceedings will be taken at a later date on its product within a maximum of
one month and that he/she has a period of three clear days to present his/her
observations and to state whether the expert survey agreed by both parties
provided for in article L. 215-17 is required and whether he/she also requires
the expert of his/her choice to take part in the sampling.
The proprietor or holder of the product may explicitly
waive the right to appoint an expert and a replacement and may refer to the
findings of the expert appointed by the juge d’instruction
.
Should the expert take part in the sampling operation,
he/she is invited, by the reporting officer, to sign the report and, if
necessary, add his/her observations. Once a meeting has been held the officer
forwards this third sample to the competent laboratory that has already
examined the first two samples.
Chapter III: Common provisions
Article R216-1
The procureur de la République must make known, at least ten days in advance, the
date and time of the hearing at which the case is to be called:
To the departmental customs director or his/her
representative, if the case relates to products that are subject to regulations
appertaining to indirect contributions;
To the regional director for
industry, research and the environment if the case relates to measuring
instruments.
Article R216-2
There is nothing new in the procedure following by the
tax and customs authorities for the investigation and institution of
proceedings in respect of acts constituting either a customs or tax offence and
a breach of the requirements of this code and the Act of 29 June 1907.
The procedure followed by agents from the department
for measuring instruments for the investigation and institution of proceedings
in respect of facts constituting a breach of articles L. 213-2 (2) and L. 213-4
(1) are still governed by these same articles.
As soon, however, as a case relating to an act covered
by the category referred to in this article is referred to the procureur de
la République , the competent authorities must inform the préfet
as soon as possible.
Part II: Safety
Article R221-1
The costs incurred by the business upon the occasion
of the checks required in application of article L. 221-7 will be reimbursed if
the approved body fails to reveal any indication that the product or service
does not satisfy the general safety obligation mentioned in article L. 221-1
and if the business has made arrangements to check, prior to the intervention
of the interested minister or ministers, that the product or service in
question meets this safety obligation.
Article R221-2
Claims for reimbursement are sent to the minister that
ordered the checks.
They must be accompanied by documents establishing
that the conditions posed in the previous article have been fulfilled and
documentary evidence of the sums incurred by the business upon the occasion of
the checks.
Article R223-1
Anyone who, in contravention of the provisions of an
order adopted in application of article L. 221-5:
Has manufactured, imported, exported, put on the
market free of charge or at a fee, a product or a service that is subject to a
suspension measure;
Has failed to circulate warnings or precautions for
use ordered;
Has not, in accordance with prescribed conditions of
place and time, totally or partially exchanged, modified or reimbursed, the
product or service;
Has not withdrawn or destroyed the product,
will be punished
with the fine laid down for petty offences (fifth category).
In the event of a repeat offence, the fine laid down
for repeat petty offences (fifth category) applies.
Article R223-2
Anyone who, in contravention of the provisions of an
order issued by the préfet adopted in
application of article L. 221-6, has not respected:
Emergency measures prescribed in order to stop the
serious or immediate danger presented by the product or service;
The detention measure decided upon for products likely
to present a serious or immediate danger;
Measures to suspend the provision of services;
will be punished
by the fine laid down for petty offences (fourth category).
Chapter
III: The Commission
for consumer safety
Article R224-1
The Commission for consumer safety comprises, in
addition to its chair, fifteen members, appointed by order of the minister for
consumer affairs upon the advice of the interested ministers:
One member of the Council of State, proposed by
general meeting of the Council of State;
One judiciary magistrate, proposed by general meeting
of the Cour de cassation ;
One member of the Court of auditors, proposed by all
the magistrates forming part of said court;
Three members of national consumer organisations,
selected from a list of nine names proposed by the consumers’ panel of the Conseil
national de la consommation;
Three members of national business organisations,
selected from a list of nine names proposed by the professional panel of the Conseil
national de la consommation;
Six qualified persons, each selected from a list of
three names, the first list proposed by the chair of the Conseil supérieur
d’hygiène publique, the second proposed by the board of directors of the Caisse
nationale d’assurance maladie des travailleurs salariés, the fifth proposed
by the board of directors of the scientific and technical centre for the building
industry and the sixth, made up of doctors competent in emergency medicine,
proposed by the chair of the Conseil national de l’ordre des médecins.
Article R224-2
The chair of the Commission for consumer safety is
appointed for five years, the members of the commission for three years.
The terms of office of the chair and members of the
commission are renewable once.
Article R224-3
Any member of the commission who, without just cause,
has failed to participate in three consecutive meetings is considered to have
automatically resigned his/her office.
In the event of death or resignation his/her successor
is appointed, in accordance with the terms fixed by article R. 224-1, for the
remaining term of office.
If this is less than eighteen months, the term of
office completed by the successor is not taken into consideration for
application of the rule under which terms of office are renewable once only.
In the event of absence or unexpected difficulty, the
chair is replaced by the member from the Council of State or, failing this, by
the judicial magistrate or, failing this, by the member from the Court of
auditors.
Article R224-4
Public officials and magistrates made available to the
commission with the approval of the chair, for a fixed, renewable period,
assist it in its work.
The chair appoints one of them to perform the duties
of secretary general.
The commission may also, for its research, as for the
assistance of the agents mentioned in article L. 222-1. These agents send their
reports direct to the commission.
Article R224-5
The credits required by the commission to complete its
mission appear in the budget of the minister for consumer affairs and are
entered as individual items.
Article R224-6
Applications referred to the commission are registered
in the order that they arrive.
Where the commission decides to act of its own motion
in respect of a case, the latter is registered soon after the sitting during
the course of which the decision was taken.
Article R224-7
For the application of the first paragraph of article
L. 224-3, the chair assigns the applications to a member of the commission who
compiles a brief report on how the application is to be followed up.
The commission rules on the findings of this report
and decides either not to follow it up or to process the application.
Where the commission decides to follow up the
application the chair appoints one of the members of the commission to be the
reporter responsible for conducting the investigation. The latter is invested
with all the powers given to the commission in article L. 224-4.
To assist the reporter in investigating cases, the
chair may, with the approval of the interested minister, call upon category A officials or government contracted agents of an equivalent
level, who then act in the capacity of commission agents. These officials or
agents may attend commission meetings where cases which they have been involved
in investigating are being examined.
Article R224-8
The person making the referral and the professional or
professionals in question are given access to information gathered by the
reporter which is not protected either by professional or trade secrecy.
They have one month to submit their observations. This
time limit may be extended to three months by decision of the chair.
These observations are annexed to the report with the
remarks that they have received from the reporter.
Article R224-9
The minister for consumer affairs appoints a
government commissioner and any replacements.
The government commissioner takes part in all
commission meetings. He/she may be assisted by one or more qualified officials.
The reporter’s report is sent to him/her at least eight days prior to the
meeting, apart from in an emergency. The four day deadline provided for in the
last paragraph of article L. 224-1 runs from the day of the meeting until the
day of the meeting during which the opinion was adopted.
Article R224-10
The commission cannot take valid decisions unless
seven of its members attend the meeting. It hears, in addition to the persons
concerned, any person who it feels may be likely to contribute to the
investigation.
Commission meetings are closed.
Article R224-11
Commission decisions are taken by majority vote of the
members present. In the event of a tie, the chair has the casting vote.
Article R224-12
Opinions of the commission are reasoned.
Notification of said opinions is sent to the minister
for consumer affairs, to interested ministers, to the person making the
referral and to interested professionals.
Each year, the government
commissioner compiles a report on the follow-up given to the latter’s opinions
and sends it to the commission.
Volume III: Endebtment
Part I: Credit
Chapter 1: Consumer credit
Section
1: The interest
free credit
Article R311-4
The cash price referred to in article L. 311-7 cannot
be higher than the sum:
of any advance
payment on the credit price payable on the day of the sale or service
provision;
of the actual
value, on the same date, of periodic payments required from the credit
purchaser, calculated according to the compound interest method, the annual
rate serving as the reference for this calculation being the average rate of
return for bonds issued during the course of the previous six months plus 50%.
In the case of loans repayable according to a
different periodicity, the rate used to calculate the current values is
obtained by multiplying the annual reference rate by the ratio between the
length of the period and that of a calendar year.
Article R311-5
(Decree no. 2001-95 of 2 February
2001 art. I Journal officiel of 3 February 2001 in force
on 1 January 2002)
An opinion published in the Journal officiel de la
République française indicates, for each six months, the current value of
the monthly repayments corresponding to EUR 10 of credit depending on whether
the vendor or the service provider is responsible for all, or part, of the cost
of the credit.
Section
2: The credit
contract
Article R311-6
The prior loan offer provided for in article L. 311-8
includes the information appearing in the standard specimens annexed to this
code which correspond to the credit transaction proposed.
This document must be presented in a clear and legible
manner. It is written in characters no less than 8 point font.
Article R311-7
The detachable withdrawal form provided for in article
L. 311-15 is drafted in accordance with the standard specimen attached in the
annex.
It may not have anything other than the name and
address of the lender on the reverse.
Article R311-8
The purchaser who asks for immediate delivery or
supply of the goods or service provision in application of article L. 311-24
must affix a request written in his/her own handwriting to the sale contract
using the following wording:
“I request immediate delivery (or immediate supply of
services).
“I acknowledge that I have been informed that this
request has the effect of reducing the legal deadline for withdrawal. This will
expire on the date on which the goods are supplied (or the service provided),
this being not less than three days and no longer than seven days”.
Article R311-9
The seller or the service provider who arranges to
enter into any agreement for immediate delivery or supply with the purchaser,
in contravention of the provisions of article R. 311-8, will be punished by the
fine laid down for petty offences (third category).
Chapter II: Credit for land purchase
Section
1: The credit contract
Article R312-1
(Decree no. 2001-95 of 2 February 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of 3 February 2001 in force on 1 January 2002)
The research costs, provided for in article L. 312-14,
that the lender may require from the borrower where the contract in view of
which the loan has been requested is not concluded, are limited to 0.75% of the
full amount of the loan, not exceeding EUR 150.
Section
2: Early settlement and
debter default
Sub-Section 1: Early settlement
Article R312-2
Any compensation that may be owing by the borrower, as
provided for by article L. 312-21 in the event of early repayment, may not
exceed the value of one half-year’s interest on the capital repaid at the
average loan rate, not exceeding 3% of the capital amount still owing prior to
repayment.
Should a loan contract have different interest rates
for different repayment periods, the compensation provided for in the previous
paragraph may be increased by the sum that guarantees the lender the average
rate laid down when the loan was granted on the period that has elapsed since the
start date.
Sub-Section
2: Debter
default
Article R312-3
(Decree no. 99-513 of 16 June 1999 art. 5 Journal
officiel of 23 June 1999)
In the event of default by the borrower and when the
immediate repayment of the capital is not requested, the increase in rate
provided for by article L. 312-22 may not exceed three interest points.
For the advance payments provided for by articles R.
317-1 and subsequent articles of the building and housing code, the interest
applied cannot be higher than the highest maximum interest rates for
contractual loans guaranteed by the government in application of article R.
312-3-1 of the building and housing code, applicable when the advance offer is
made.
The compensation provided for in the event of
cancellation of the loan contract may not exceed 7% of the sums owing by virtue
of the outstanding capital amount as well as interest accrued and not paid.
Section
3: Lease
purchase and lease with promise to sell
Article R312-4
The compensation, provided for in article L. 312-29 in
the event of default by the lessee in the performance of hire-purchase or lease
contracts accompanied by an undertaking to sell, may not exceed 2% of that part
of the payments corresponding to the capital value of the property to be made
up until the date appointed for transfer of ownership.
Chapter III: Common provisions
Section 1: Interest rate
Sub-Section
1: The annual percentage
rate
Article R313-1
(Decree n° 2002-927 of
Save the loan transactions mentioned in 3° of article L311-3 and in
article L312-2 of this code for which the annualised percentage rate is an
annual rate, proportional to the period rate, at the end of the term and
expressed for one hundred monetary units, the annualised percentage rate is an
annual rate, at the end of the term, expressed for hundred monetary units and
calculated in accordance with the method of equivalence defined by the system
indicated in the enclosure attached to this code. The borrower shall expressly
be informed about the period rate as well as about the length of the period.
The period rate is calculated actuarially, from a unitary period corresponding
interval of payments made by the borrower. It ensures, according to the
compound interest method, equality between, on the one hand, the sums loaned
and, on the other hand, all the payments owed by the borrower by virtue of the
loan, in capital, interest and other costs, this items being, if necessary, estimated.
When the interval of payments is irregular, the unitary period is that which
corresponds to the shortest interval between two payments. The shortest
calculation interval may not, however, be less than one month.
For the transactions mentioned in 3° of article L312-2, when payments are not
made annually, the annualised percentage rate is obtained by multiplying the
period rate by the ratio between the duration of the calendar year and that of
the unitary period. The ratio is calculated, where appropriate, with a accuracy of at least one decimal point. Enclosure to
article R313-1 of CONSUMER CODE
The basis of calculation expressing the equivalence of
loans,
on the one hand, and the repayments and fees, on the other hand
Cliché
Meaning of letters and signs:
K
is the order number of a loan;
K'
is the order number of a repayment or a payment of fees;
AK
is the amount of the loan n° K;
A'K' is the amount of repayment or payment of fees n° K';
is the sign indicating the sum;
m
is the order number of the last loan;
M'
is the order number of the last repayment or last payment fees;
tK
is the interval, expressed in years and fractions of years, between the date of
the loan n°1 and those of repayments n° to m:
tK'
is the interval, expressed in years and fractions of years, between the date of
the loan n° and those of repayments of the fees n°1 to m';
i
is the annualised percentage rate which may be calculated (either by the
algebra, or by successive approximations or by computerised program) when the
other terms of the equation are known, by the contract or otherwise.
Remarks:
a) The sums paid on both sides at different moments shall not necessarily be
the same amount and shall not necessarily be paid at same intervals.
b) The initial date is that of the first loan.
c) The gap between the dates used for the calculations shall be expressed in
years or fractions of years. A year composed of 365 days, or, for leap-years,
52 weeks or 12 normalised months. A normalised month shall count 30,416 66 days
(that is, 365/12), whether the year is a leap year or not.
d) The result of the calculation shall be expressed with exactitude of at least
a decimal point. When the figure is rounded to a particular decimal point, the
following rule shall apply. If the figure of the decimal point following this
particular decimal point is superior or equal to 5, the figure of this
particular decimal point shall be increased by 1.
Article R313-2
When this relates to an overdrawn account, the amount
of credit to be taken into consideration in calculating the annualised
percentage rate is attributed, according to the numbers method, to a period of
one day upon expiry of which it is deemed to have been repaid at the same time
as the related charges. To this end, each of the debit balances successively
listed in the account during the course of the interval separating two
contractual orders is multiplied by its own duration in days.
If the credit takes the form of the institution of
drawing rights, the annualised percentage rate is calculated on the totality of
the rights made available to the client.
Article R313-3
When this relates to discounting, the period rate is
understood to be the ratio between the interest and other costs owed by the
borrower in respect of the discount and the amount of the discounted bill. The
period is equal to the number of calendar days, from the date of the
negotiation exclusive until the actual expiry date of the bill inclusive. This
period cannot be retained for a period of less than ten days.
Article R313-4
When the amount of the transactions mentioned in
articles R. 313-2 and R. 313-3 is less than an amount fixed by order of the
minister for economic affairs and finance, a fixed amount may be received for
each transaction which is not taken into consideration in order to determine
the annualised percentage rate. The borrower must be notified of this minimum
amount.
Article R313-5
Where the granting of a loan is subject to a prior
phase of saving, the annualised percentage rate is calculated without taking
this saving phase into consideration.
Section
2: Payment of
seller
Article R313-10
Anyone who may have remunerated a seller or arranged
for a seller to be remunerated for moveable or immovable property under
conditions contrary to the provisions of article L. 313-11 will be punished
with the fine laid down for petty offences (fifth category).
Any seller who may have been remunerated under the
same conditions will be punished with the same penalty.
In the event of a repeat offence, the fine laid down
for repeated petty offences (fifth category) will apply.
Part III: Handling situations of overindebtedness
Chapter 1: Proceedings before the Commission for
private overindebtedness
Section
1: Organisation
and operation of the commission
Article R331-1
More than one Commission for private overindebtedness
per department may be created by order of the préfet
where the economic, social, geographical or demographic situation of the
department so requires. This order fixed the territorial jurisdiction of the
commission and its head office.
The secretariat is located in premises designated by
the Banque de France.
Article R331-2
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 1 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The préfet , the trésorier-payeur general
and the director of the tax authority may only be represented by one single
deputy respectively.
The préfet selects
his/her deputy from amongst members of the corps préfectoral, heads of
decentralised government departments or directeurs de prefecture.
The trésorier-payeur general selects
his/her deputy from amongst the treasury officials with the rank of inspector
at the very least or from amongst the district collectors of taxes.
The director of the tax authority selects his deputy from amongst the
management team officials with the rank of inspector at the least.
The deputy préfet only chairs the
commission in the absence of the trésorier-payeur general .
Article R331-3
The governor of the Banque de France appoints local representatives of
this establishment attached to the commission as well as persons authorized to
represent them.
Article R331-4
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 2 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
For each commission, the préfet appoints by order, for a renewable period of one
year, one person and his replacement, selected from a departmental list,
comprising four names, which is sent by the Association française des
établissements de credit et des entreprises d’investissement, as well as
one person and his replacement proposed, under the same conditions, by family
or consumer associations sitting on the departmental consumer committee defined
in article R.512-1.
If the absence of one of these persons and his/her
replacement is noted at three consecutive commission meetings, the préfet may terminate their mandate prior to the expiry of
the one year period. It then appoints another person and a replacement from the
same list.
Article R331-5
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 3 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The commission can only meet validly if at least four
of its six members are present or represented. In the event of a tie the chair
has the casting vote.
Article R331-6
In overseas departments and in the
Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon local authority, the branch manager of the overseas
departments’ bank of issue is a member of the commission instead of the Banque
de France representative. The branch manager may be represented by one of
his/her assistants. His/her departments provide the commission with its
secretariat.
Section 2: Procedure before the Commission
Sub-Section 1: General provisions
Article R331-7
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 4 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
Requests are referred to the commission to compile a
contractual recovery plan by means of a statement from the debtor submitted or
sent to its secretariat. Under penalty of inadmissibility, the request must be
signed by the debtor, must state his/her name and address, mention his family situation,
supply a detailed statement of income and assets and liabilities and must
indicate the name and address of creditors. The commission informs the debtor
and creditors of the referral by ordinary letter. The letter sent to the debtor
states that the latter may be given a hearing upon request submitted or address
to the secretariat of the commission.
Article R331-8
The commission examines the admissibility of the
request. It gives a reasoned decision which is notified to the debtor and
creditors by recorded delivery letter. The letter indicates that the decision
may be open to appeal, within fifteen days of its notification, by declaration
submitted or sent to the commission secretariat by recorded delivery letter.
This declaration, signed by its author, indicates its
name, forenames and profession and address as well as the decision being
appealed against. The commission secretariat sends a copy of the declaration to
the juge de l’exécution together with the case file.
The judge rules after having gathered or requested the
parties’ observations.
The secretariat/registry notifies the debtor and
his/her creditors of the decision ruling on the appeal by recorded delivery
letter. He sends a copy by ordinary letter to the commission and returns the
case file.
The judge’s decision is not open to appeal.
Article R331-9
The call-up of creditors provided for in the fifth
paragraph of article L. 331-3 is published at the behest of the commission
secretariat in a journal authorised to accept legal notices in the department
where the commission meets. The call-up specifies how long the creditors have
in order to declare their debts by means of an ordinary letter sent to the
commission secretariat.
Should an agreement fail to be reached by the parties,
the commission refers the case to the juge de l’exécution for the
purposes of stating, by means of a decision not open to appeal, the party or
parties who will pay for the cost of calling up the creditors.
Article R331-10
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 5 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
Persons given a hearing by the commission or that the
commission decides to have heard by one of its members are called to appear at
least fifteen days prior to the date of the meeting by ordinary letter.
The invitation sent to the debtor and creditors
informs them that they may be assisted by the person of their choice.
Article R331-10-1
The commission informs the creditors, by recorded
delivery letter, of the liabilities declared by the debtor. This letter reproduces
the provisions of the sixth and seventh paragraphs of article L. 331-3 of the
French consumer code.
Where the commission is notified by the debtor or the
creditors that persons have stood surety for the repayment of one or more
debts, these persons are notified by recorded delivery letter that the debtor
has made an application to the commission and are invited to prove, within
thirty days, the amount of the sums which may have already been settled in
fulfilment of the undertaking as guarantor and to supply, within the same
deadline, any additional information that may be required.
In view of all the items produced by the parties, the
commission compiles a statement of liabilities and notifies the debtor of this
by recorded delivery letter. The letter reproduces the provisions of the first
paragraph of article L. 331-4 of the French consumer code and states that any
objections on the part of the debtor must be raised by means of a reasoned
declaration submitted or sent by recorded delivery letter to the commission
secretariat.
Article R331-10-2
For the application of articles L. 331-6, L. 331-7 and
L. 331-7-1, the share of the debtor’s monthly income to be allocated to
settling his/her debts is calculated by applying the scale provided for in article
R. 145-2 of the French labour code. A ceiling equivalent to the difference
between the interested party’s monthly income and the minimum wage plus 50% for
a household, is, however, put on the sum reached by this calculation.
Sub-Section 2: Admission of debts
Article R331-11
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 5 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
When it is necessary to carry out checks on one or
more debts, in application of article L. 331-4, the commission refers the case
to the juge de l’exécution by means of an ordinary letter signed by its
chair.
The letter states the name, forenames, profession and
address of the debtor and those of the creditors in question or, for legal
entities, their company name and registered office. It contains details of the
purpose of, and reasons for, the referral and indicates, where appropriate,
that the referral has been made at the debtor’s request. Documents required in
order to carry out checks on the debts are attached thereto.
The Commission informs creditors in question et debtor that the judge is seized
Article R331-12
Checking of the validity and amount of the debt is
carried out for procedural requirements and in order to enable the commission
to continue with its mission. Checking relates to the liquid and certain nature
of the debt as well as the amount of the sums claimed in principal, interest
and extras.
When the validity of certain debts cannot be
acknowledged, these are removed from the procedure.
Article R331-13
The judge rules after having gather or requested the
parties’ observations. The judge’s decision is not open to appeal.
Sub-Section
3: Suspension
of enforcement proceedings and postponement of
adjudication
Article R331-14
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 10 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The suspension, in application of the first paragraph
of article L. 331-5, of enforcement proceedings instituted against the debtor
is requested by ordinary letter addressed to the secretariat/clerk to the juge
de l’exécution or, subsequent to the publication of an order for the
purposes of seizure of immovable property, to the secretariat/clerk to the
judge ordering the seizure. Where the case is referred to the judge in an
emergency at the behest of the chair of the commission, his deputy or the local
banque de France representative, the latter inform the other members of the
commission. Where the case is referred to the judge at the behest of the debtor
the secretariat/clerk notifies the commission by ordinary letter.
The referral letter state the name, forenames,
profession and address of the debtor and those of the creditors instituting
proceedings or, for legal entities, their company name and registered office.
Attached thereto is the debtor’s statement of income, a summary of his/her
assets and liabilities, a breakdown of his debts and a list of current
proceedings.
Should the writ provided for by article 689 of the
French code of civil procedure be served upon the debtor, the latter must
inform the commission without delay.
Should the latter believe the application of the third
paragraph of article L. 331-5 to be opportune, it refers the case to the judge
by sending the secretariat/clerk of the tribunal de grande instance, a
request to postpone adjudication, by informal letter, at least five days prior
to the date provided for said adjudication, as fixed by the aforementioned
writ, by supplying the information provided for in the second paragraph of I
hereinabove and by specifying, in addition, the serious and duly justified
causes invoked in support of the application.
The secretariat/clerk brings this application to the
attention of the debtor and creditor instituting the proceedings by recorded
delivery letter.
Article R331-15
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 11 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The creditors instituting the proceedings and the
agents responsible for enforcement are notified of the order suspending one or
more enforcement proceedings by the secretariat/clerk by recorded delivery
letter.
The notification states that the order may the
subject, on the part of the creditors instituting the proceedings, of an
application for retraction formed by signed declaration of its author and
submitted or sent to the secretariat/clerk of the juge de l’exécution.
Attached thereto is a copy of the order.
A copy of the order by which the judged rules on the
application for suspension of enforcement proceedings and of that which rules
on the application for retraction is sent by the secretariat/clerk, by informal
letter, to the commission which then notifies the debtor.
The secretariat/clerk notifies the applicant creditor
and the agents responsible for enforcing the order which retracts the decision
to suspend, by informal letter, and the order which rejects the application for
retraction by recorded delivery letter.
The orders mentioned in the previous paragraphs are
not open to appeal.
Notification of the judgement ruling on the
postponement of the adjudication is by recorded delivery letter sent by the
secretariat/clerk of the tribunal de grande instance to the commission,
to the debtor as well as to the creditor instituting the proceedings.
The notification states that this judgement is neither
open to appeal nor to objection.
Sub-Section 4: Contractual recovery plan
Article R331-16
The contractual recovery plan is signed and dated by
the parties: a copy is addressed to them.
Article R331-17
The contractual recovery plan mentions that it is
automatically null and void fifteen days after a formal notification sent to
the debtor requesting him/her to fulfil his/her obligations goes unheeded,
without prejudice to the exercising of the options provided for in articles R.
331-7 and R. 331-14.
Sub-Section
5: Measures
recommended by the commission
Article R331-18
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 12 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
When the commission establishes that it is impossible
to get the interested parties to agree on a contractual plan, it notifies the
debtor by recorded delivery letter and the creditors by ordinary letter.
These letters mention that the debtor may, within
fifteen days of the notification referred to in the previous paragraph, refer
the case to the commission for it to recommend the measures provided for in
article L. 331-7 or in the first paragraph of article L. 331-7-1, the
provisions of which are reproduced, in full, in the letters.
When, in application of article L. 331-5, the juge
de l’exécution has ordered the suspension of one or more enforcement
proceedings instituted against the debtor, these letters also mention that the
suspension is to last until the expiry of the deadline mentioned in the
previous paragraph, or, if the debtor is making use of the option provided for
in article L. 331-7, until the judge has rendered the commission’s
recommendations enforceable or has ruled on the objection raised against them.
Article R331-19
The debtor’s request, formed in application of the
first paragraph of article L. 331-7, is made by a declaration signed by said
debtor and submitted or sent to the secretariat of the commission with which
the debtor is registered.
The commission notifies the creditors of the request
by recorded delivery letter.
Article R331-19-1
Thirty days prior to the end of the moratorium
provided for in the first paragraph of article L. 331-7-1, the commission
notifies the creditors and the debtor by recorded delivery letter that the
latter’s situation is to be re-examined once the moratorium is over.
This letter reproduces the provisions of article L.
331-7 and L. 331-7-1 and states that the debtor has thirty days in which to
inform the commission of his/her financial position and of any change in
his/her personal circumstances. The letter also states that, should this information
not be received within the appointed deadline, the commission will give its
opinion based on the information that it has already been supplied.
Article R331-20
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 14 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The commission gives its opinion within two months,
depending on the circumstances, of the referral or the expiry of the deadline
provided for in article R. 331-19-1, after having gathered or requested the
parties’ observations.
In the event of the application of points 3 and 4 of
article L. 331-7 or of the first or third paragraph of article L. 331-7-1, an
explanation is given by means of special justification.
The parties are notified of the commission’s opinion
by recorded delivery letter. This letter mentions the provisions contained in
the first paragraph of article L. 332-2.
Chapter II: Supervision by the judge of the measures
recommended by the Commission for private overindebtedness
Section
1: Acquisition
of Court enforcement
Article R332-1
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 15 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
Within fifteen days of having given its opinion, the
commission sends the juge de l’exécution, by ordinary letter signed by
its chair, the measures that it recommends be given legal force.
The letter includes, in its annex, the commission’s
recommendations, the letters mentioned in articles R. 331-18, R. 331-19 and R.
331-19-1, as well as the declaration provided for in the first paragraph of
article R. 331-19.
Article R332-2
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 16 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
The juge de l’exécution checks, in view of the
documents forwarded by the commission, that the latter’s recommendations
conform to the provisions of articles L. 331-7 and L. 331-7-1 and that they
have been formulated in accordance with the procedure provided for in articles
R. 331-18 to R. 331-20. In addition, he/she ensures that the recommended
measures are well-founded in application of the third paragraph of article L.
331-7-1.
Article R332-3
(Decree no. 99-65 of 1 February 1999 art. 17 Journal
officiel of 2 February 1999)
In the absence of an objection being raised within the
deadline provided for in the first paragraph of article L. 332-1, the judge
issues an order.
When he invests the recommendations with legal force,
the latter are annexed to the decision.
The secretariat/clerk compiles as many copies of the
order as there are parties and sends them to the commission together with the
documents forwarded. The commission sends each of the parties a copy of the
order by recorded delivery post.
Should the recommendations prove to be illegal or
should the procedure prove to be irregular or where the measures recommended in
application of the third paragraph of article L. 331-7-1 be unfounded, the
judge sends a copy of his/her order to the commission and returns the documents
inviting the latter to conform to the provisions of article R. 331-20. The
secretariat/clerk informs the parties by ordinary letter.
The judge’s decision is not open to appeal.
Section 2: Contesting
recommended measures
Article R332-4
The objection provided for in article L. 332-2 is
formed by declaration submitted or sent to the secretariat/clerk of the juge
de l’exécution.
The declaration states the name, forenames, profession
and address of the interested party and is signed by said party.
The commission’s recommendations are attached thereto.
The secretariat/clerk invites the commission to
forward the case file.
Article R332-5
The application for provisional enforcement for one or
more of the measures recommended by the commission presented in application of
the second paragraph of article L. 332-2 is formed by declaration signed by its
author and sent to the secretariat/clerk for the juge de l’exécution.
Article R332-6
The judge rules on the application referred to in
article R. 332-5 after having gathered or requested the parties’ observations.
They are notified of his/her decision by the secretariat/clerk by means of
recorded delivery letter.
The provisional enforcement may be ordered by the
first presiding judge at the court of appeal ruling in interlocutory
proceedings if there is a risk of it leading to manifestly excessive
consequences. The application must be made within fifteen days of the
notification mentioned in the previous paragraph.
Article R332-7
The call-up of creditors provided for in the third
paragraph of article L. 332-2 is published by the secretariat/clerk for the juge
de l’exécution in accordance with the forms provided for in article R.
331-9.
Should an agreement fail to be reached between the
parties, the juge de l’exécution designates, by decision not open to
appeal, the party or parties who will pay for the cost of the call-up of
creditors.
Article R332-8
The secretariat/clerk calls each of the parties by
recorded delivery letter at least fifteen days prior to the date that it fixes
for the objection to be heard.
The procedural rules referred to in article 13 and 14
of decree no. 92-755 of
Article R332-8-1
The judge rules on the objection by applying either
article L. 331-7 or article L. 331-7-1.
Article R332-9
The judgement ruling on the objection in application
of article L. 332-2 is automatically enforceable, on a provisional basis.
Each of the parties is notified of this judgement by
the secretariat/clerk by recorded delivery letter.
It is open to appeal.
Article R332-10
In the event of a debt corresponding to the full
amount of an unpaid cheque being wiped off in full and regularising the payment
problem in application of article L. 332-4, the account holding establishment
notifies the Banque de France of this regularisation at the latest on the
second working days following the submission by the debtor of a certificate
stating that the payment problem has been regularised subsequent to the
corresponding debt being wiped off in full.
Where the measure to clear the debt was taken in
application of article L. 332-2, the certificate is drawn up by the juge de
l’exécution and sent to the debtor by the secretariat/clerk at the same
time as the judgement provided from in the second paragraph of article R.
332-9.
Chapter III: Common provisions
Article R333-1
The parties arrange for their own defence before the juge
de l’exécution. They have the right to be assisted or represented in
accordance with the provisions of article 12 of decree no. 92-755 of
Appeals and pourvoi en cassation are formed,
instructed and judged according to rules of procedure without obligatory
representation provided for in articles 931 to 949 and 983 to 995 of the new
code of civil procedure.
Article R333-2
Other than in the case provided for in article L.
333-3-1, the competent commission is that of the place in which the debtor is
domiciled.
Article R333-3
The competent juge de l’exécution is that of
the place where the debtor resides, including for the application of article R.
331-14. In the case provided for in article L. 333-3-1 however, the competent
judge is the one with jurisdiction in the place where the commission meets.
Article R333-4
Rules relating to remissions that may be granted by
provident and social security organisations are fixed by articles R. 243-20-3
and R. 741-39, second paragraph, of the French social security code, reproduced
hereinafter:
“Art. R. 243-20-3:
For the application of article L. 333-1 of the French
consumer code, the out-of-court appeals commission or the director of the
organisation responsible for recovery of the debt, within the bounds of their
respective jurisdiction, may grant a partial or total remission of the delay
surcharges appertaining to outstanding contributions still unpaid by employers
of domestic workers and child minders. This remission is not subject to prior
payment of said contributions.
Where an application for out-of-court settlement is
received from the personal debt commission, the debtor formulates the
application for the remission of delay surcharges to the organisation
responsible for recovery within fifteen days of the date of referral to the
commission.
The commission and the debtor are notified of
decisions appertaining to the remission of delay surcharges within one month of
receipt of the remission application. Failure to respond on the part of the organisation
responsible for recovery of the debt within this time is taken to mean that the
application has been rejected.
Remission of delay surcharges is acquired where the
contractual settlement plan has been agreed by the parties or where the judge
has ordered measures aiming to guarantee recovery.”
“Art. R. 741-39, second paragraph:
For the application of article L. 333-1 of the French
consumer code, the board of directors or the out-of-court appeals commission of
the caisses de mutualité sociale agricole may grant, according to
procedures provided for in article R. 243-20-3, a partial or total remission of
delay surcharges appertaining to outstanding contributions not paid b persons
affiliated with voluntary medical insurance who bear the cost of these contributions
personally.
Article R333-5
Upon receipt of the notification provided for in the
first paragraph of article R. 331-8, the debtor sends a copy of said
notification to the huissier de justice instrumentaire by recorded
delivery letter.
In this event, the remuneration paid by the debtor is
equal to half of that laid down for documents of the same nature by decree no.
96-1080 of
Volume IV: Consumer associations
Part I: Association approval
Article R411-1
The approval of consumer associations provided for in
part I of volume IV of the Legislative part of this
code may be granted to any association:
Which can prove on the date of request that its has
been in existence for one year;
Which, during this period of existence, provides
evidence of effective and public activity with a view to the protection of
consumer interests, evaluated, in particular, in line with the circulation of
publications relating to the holding of regular and information meetings;
Which brings together, on the date
of the application for approval, a number of individually paid-up members:
at least
10,000 for national associations, this condition not being required for
associations dedicated to research and analysis of a scientific nature;
an adequate
number, in consideration of the territorial framework of their activity, for
local, departmental or regional associations.
Where the association has a federal or confederal
structure, the total number of paid-up members of all the
component associations are taken into consideration.
Article R411-2
Approval of national organisations is granted by joint
order of the minister for consumer affairs and the Keeper of the Seals. It is
published in the Journal officiel de la République française.
Approval of local, departmental or regional
associations is granted by order of the préfet
of the department in which the association has its head office. It is
published in the Recueil des actes administratifs.
The opinion of the ministère public provided
for in article L. 411-1 is given by the procureur général at the court of appeal with jurisdiction in the place
where the association has its headquarters.
The approval is granted for five years. It is
renewable under the same conditions as the initial agreement.
Article R411-3
When several associations, at least one of which is
approved, are converted into one single association, approval must be sought
once again. In this case, the condition of seniority provided for in article R.
411-1 is not required.
Article R411-4
Applications for approval and renewal are sent to the
departmental office for competition, consumer protection and fraud prevention
of the department in which the association has its registered office.
The components of the case file and the screening
procedure are fixed by joint order of the minister for consumer affairs and the
Keeper of the Seals.
When the case file submitted to the administration is
complete, it is submitted in return for a receipt.
Article R411-5
Notification of the decision to approve or refuse is
given within six months of the issuing of the receipt. After this deadline,
approval is considered to have been granted.
Refusals must be reasoned.
Article R411-6
Associations report on their activity on an annual
basis in accordance with procedures fixed by order adopted in the forms
provided for in article R. 411-4.
Article R411-7
The approval may be withdrawn upon the advice of the procureur
général ,
where the association no longer has the number of members required for its
approval, where it can no longer provide evidence of the activity defined in
article R. 411-1, with the exception of associations issuing from the
cooperative companies referred to in article L. 412-1. The association must be
able to present its observations in advance.
Part II: Associations’ legal actions
Chapter
I: Representative action
Article R422-1
Consumers who, on the basis of the provisions of
article L. 422-1, intend to claim reparation for damages that they incurred due
to the same professional and which have a common origin may give an approved
consumer association the mandate to act on their behalf before civil courts,
under the conditions fixed by this chapter.
Unless an a agreement is
reached to the contrary, the mandate determined in this way does not include
duty of aid.
Article R422-2
The mandate must be in writing, must expressly state
its purpose and must invest the approved national consumer association with the
power to institute all procedural acts on the consumer’s behalf.
The mandate may also provide for:
Advance payment by the approved national consumer
association of all, or part, of the costs and expenses relating to the
proceedings;
The payment of retainers by the consumer;
Renunciation by the national approved consumer
association of the performance of the mandate subsequent to formal notification
of the consumer by recorded delivery letter should the latter’s inertia be
likely to slow down the proceedings;
Representation of the consumer by the national
approval consumer association during investigative measures;
The possibility for the national
approved consumer association of instituting appeal procedures on the
consumer’s behalf, with the exception of pourvoi en cassation, without
any further mandate.
Article R422-3
For the application of article L. 422-1, competence in
respect of the amount of the claim and level of competence in the last resort
re determined, for all claims, by the higher of the two.
Article R422-4
Summonses and notifications intended for the consumer
for the advancement of the proceedings are sent to the national approved
consumer association acting on its behalf.
Article R422-5
If the mandate is revoked, the party that issued the
mandate may continue with the proceedings instituted as if it had instituted
said proceedings direct.
The party that revokes its mandate must notify the
judge and the opposing party as soon as possible.
Article R422-6
The national approval consumer association is obliged
to inform its principals, by all appropriate means, of the court before which
the case has been brought and, where appropriate, that to which it may have
been referred, the date of the hearing and the date on which the ruling is
likely to be given.
At the request of one of its principals, the national
approved consumer association must issue, at its own expense, a copy of the
document instituting the proceedings and, where appropriate, the submissions.
Article R422-7
In the event of dissolution of the national approved
consumer association, change of company object or withdrawal of approval,
consumers may give the mandate to another national approved consumer association
to continue with the proceedings.
Article R422-8
The document instituting the proceedings contains,
upon pain of invalidity, in addition to the statements provided for by law, the
name of the national approved association, its registered office, the body that
represents it legally and the name, forenames and address of each of the
consumers on whose behalf it is acting.
A copy of the certificate of approval issued in
application of the provisions of article R. 411-2 is attached to the document
instituting the proceedings.
Article R422-9
The acte d’appel and the declaration de
pourvoi, subject to penalty of invalidity, in addition to the statements
provided for by law, the name of the national approved consumer association,
its registered office, the body representing it legally and the identity of the
consumers on whose behalf it is acting.
Article R422-10
The national approved consumer association is notified
of the decision and informs its principals without delay and, in any event,
within the deadlines for appeal actions. The deadline for instituting appeal
proceedings commences with notification of the association.
Volume V: The institutions
Chapter
I: Departmental
consumer committees
Article R512-1
In each department an order issued by the préfet creates a consumer committee half of which is made up
of consumer representatives and half of which is made up of representatives of
economic activities. It is chaired by the préfet
or his/her representative. An order issued by the minister for economic
affairs and finance fixed regulations regarding its composition and operation.
The committee may issue opinions and wishes in respect
of questions relating to consumer affairs, competition and pricing.
Part II: The Institut national de la consummation
Chapter I: Organisation and administration
Article R531-1
The Institut national de la consommation (INC)
is a national public institution of an industrial and commercial nature, is a legal entity and is financially independent. It
is placed under the protection of the minister for consumer affairs.
Article R531-2
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The purpose of the Institut national de la
consommation is to:
Supply technical support to consumer organisations;
Group together, produce, analyse and disseminate
information, studies, inquiries and tests;
Implement training and education initiatives on
questions of consumer affairs.
Article R531-3
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
In order to complete the missions mentioned in article
R. 531-2, the Institut national de la consommation:
With regard to consumer organisations:
implements and supplies technical support to consumer
organisations, such as the compilation of legal, economic and technical
studies, teaching and documentary dossiers, preparatory summary and analysis
dossiers in support of the work of the Conseil national de consommation,
training initiatives, comparative tests, televised broadcasts, specialist
publications. It provides access to institutional databases.
Annual specifications for technical support services
to be supplied to consumer organisations are compiled by a commission created
to this end and which monitors implementation of said specifications. This
commission is made up of a representative from each of the national approved
consumer organisations, as well as the director of the establishment. The
government commissioner and the contrôleur d’Etat are legally entitled
to assist in its work;
Supplies consumer organisations with services, the
nature and content of which are defined by agreements negotiated between the
establishment and one ore more consumer organisations;
Gathers information on questions
involving the protection of consumer interests, in particular, with a view to
setting up databases.
With regard to the public:
Circulates, by any appropriate means, information on
consumer-related issues, products and services likely to be used by consumers;
Implements any product, study,
comparative test or service relating to its missions.
Article R531-4
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The Institut national de la consommation is
administered by a board of directors made up of sixteen members with the right
to vote:
Seven representatives of consumers and users appointed
by the minister for consumer affairs;
Two government representatives, one appointed by the
minister for economic affairs, the other by the minister for consumer affairs;
Two representatives elected by the staff of the Institut
national de la consommation, under the conditions provided for by law no.
83-675 of 26 July 1983 relating to the democratisation of the public sector;
Five qualified persons appointed by the minister for
consumer affairs for their skills.
Members are appointed by order of the minister for
consumer affairs for a three year term of office, renewable only once.
Should a vacancy occur, for whatever reason, more than
six months prior to the expiry of the term of office, another member is
appointed by the minister for consumer affairs for the period still left to
run. This counts as one of the two periods of office authorised by the previous
paragraph if its is for eighteen months or more.
Article R531-5
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The board of directors elects one of its own members
as chair and vice-chair, for the same period of office as that held by the
members, the vice-chair automatically replacing the chair when absent or unable
to attend due to unforeseen difficulties. In the event of the termination of
the office of chair or vice-chair during the course of the mandate, a successor
is elected under the same conditions for the period still left to run.
Article R531-6
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
Board members perform their duties free of charge.
Members are entitled to the travel and accommodation expenses provided for by
decree no. 90-437 of
Article R531-7
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The board of directors meets at least three times a
year, at the invitation of its chair or at the request of the majority of its
members or of the government commissioner.
The chair orders the agenda. In particular, issues raised by the majority of board members, by the director or
the government commissioner are included therein.
In the event of occasional lack of availability, a
board member may be represented by another member. Each member may not,
however, represent more than one other member at the most. The board of
directors can only take valid decisions if the majority of its members are present
or represented. If the quorum is not reached upon the occasion of the first
meeting, the board may take valid decisions without requiring a quorum
following a second convocation which must take place within a maximum of
fifteen days.
Decisions are taken by majority vote of the members
present or represented. In the event of a tie the chair has the casting vote.
The board of directors may hear experts in order to
examine an issue appearing on the agenda.
The director of the Institut national de la consommation,
the government commissioner, the contrôleur d’Etat and the internal
auditor attend board meetings and have right of discussion only. The director
may be assisted by any colleague of his/her choice. He/she may be represented
in the event of unforeseen difficulty.
Article R531-8
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The board of directors deliberates on:
General establishment guidelines;
The contract of agreed objectives, covering several
years, concluded with the government;
Annual plans of action or those covering several
years;
Rules of procedure for the commission mentioned in
point 1 of article R531-3, as well as on the annual specifications for
technical support services supplied to consumer organisations compiled by this
commission and presented by the director;
Annual income and expenditure forecasts as well as
amendment sheets which include either an increase in the
overall amount of expenditure or credit transfers between the capital
transactions Section and the operating Section or between equipment
chapters and personnel chapters. Other amendment sheets are adopted by the
director with the assent of the contrôleur d’Etat. He reports to the
board of directors at its next meeting;
General terms for fixing retail prices for
establishment products and services;
The annual report presented by the director;
The financial accounts and appropriation of profit or
treatment of loss for the financial year;
Borrowings;
The acquisition, extension or transfer of the
establishment’s financial holdings;
The creation or disposal of subsidiary companies;
The acceptance or refusal of donations and legacies;
The institution of legal
proceedings.
The board of directors writes its own rules of
procedure.
Article R531-9
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The government commissioner attached to the Institut
national de la consommation is the director general for competition,
consumer affairs and fraud prevention.
For board meetings, he/she may be accompanied by any
colleague or qualified person of his/her choice. He/she may be represented at
said meetings.
Decisions taken by the board of directors are
enforceable, unless the government commissioner requests that said enforcement
be suspended within ten days of the decision being taken. In this event, the
government commissioner submits this decision to the minister for consumer
affairs, who makes a ruling within one month of the suspension request. Failing
a decision of express and reasoned rejection on the part of the minister within
this deadline, the decision is enforceable.
Decisions relating to loans, acquisitions, extensions
and disposals of holdings and to creations or disposals of subsidiaries are
only enforceable subsequent to approval by joint order of the minister with
responsibility for the budget, the minister for consumer affairs and, where
appropriate, the minister for economic affairs.
Decisions relating to the financial accounts and to
the appropriation of profit or treatment of loss, to income and expenditure
forecasts, to acceptance and refusal of donations and legacies, to general
conditions for recruitment, employment and remuneration of personnel and to
commercial policy are enforceable, unless an objection is raised by the
minister for consumer affairs or the minister responsible for the budget,
fifteen days after receipt of the summary of the decision by the government
commissioner and the minister responsible for the budget.
Article R531-10
The director of the Institut national de la
consommation is appointed by decree adopted on the report of the Prime
minister and the minister for consumer affairs. He administers and manages the
establishment.
The director:
Prepares and enforces decisions taken by the board of
directors;
Is responsible for the organisation of the
establishment as well as for its operation;
Prepares activity programmes for the establishment and
implements them;
Recruits and manages personnel;
Represents the Institut national
de la consommation at law and in all civil acts.
To institute legal proceedings, he/she must have authorisation from the board
of directors or, failing this, in an emergency, that of the chair of the board
of directors. He/she reports to the board of directors;
Is authorising officer for income and expenditure.
Chapter
II: Consultative bodies
Article R532-1
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The board of directors may create its own consultative
committees. The director is automatically entitled to become a member of these
committees. The government commissioner and the contrôleur d’Etat
automatically assist in the work of said committees.
Article R532-2
The comparative testing authority is made up of
fifteen members divided as follows:
Six administrators representing consumers, appointed
from within the Institut national de la consommation board of directors;
Six representatives of business, two of whom are
representatives of distribution companies appointed by the minister for
consumer affairs;
Two experts appointed by the minister for consumer
affairs from the qualified persons mentioned in point 2 of article R. 531-3;
One administrator representing the
personnel appointed by the Institut national de la consommation board of
directors.
The comparative testing authority elects its chair
from within. The chair informs the institute’s board of directors about the
work being carried out by the comparative testing authority and submits its
proposals to said institute.
Members of the comparative testing authority have a
three year term of office. In the event of a tie when it comes to decision
making, the authority’s chair has the casting vote.
The government commissioner attached to the Institut
national de la consommation is represented in the work of the comparative
testing authority. The director of the establishment or his representative
assists in said work, as well as the chair of the board of directors if he is
not a member of the comparative testing authority.
Article R532-3
The board of directors may create consultative
technical committees that it regulates.
Chapter
III: Financial and
accounting provisions
Article R533-1
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The establishment’s internal auditor is appointed by
joint order of the minister responsible for the budget and the minister for
consumer affairs.
Article R533-2
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The Institut national de la consommation is
subject to the government economic and financial control provided for by decree
no. 53-707 of
Article R533-3
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The director of the Institut national de la
consommation may create authorisations to receive funds and incur expenditure
in accordance with the conditions provided for by decree no. 92-681 of
Article R533-4
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The Institut national de la consommation is
subject to the financial and accounting scheme applicable to public
establishments of an industrial and commercial nature which have an internal
auditor defined by decree no. 62-1587 of
Article R533-5
(Decree no. 2001-300 of 4 April 2001 art. 1 Journal
officiel of
The establishment’s resources comprise:
Income from its commercial operations, in particular,
the sale of its publications;
Income from its training activities;
Grants or investment from government, local
authorities or any other public or private entity;
Donations and legacies, gifts and contributions of any
kind;
Generally speaking, any income that the establishment
derives from its activity or to which it legally has access.
Part
V: The general commission
for the unification of analysis methods
Article R551-1
A general commission for the unification of analysis
methods whose members are appointed by joint order of the ministers for
agriculture, justice, economic affairs and finance, industry, health, social
security and maritime affairs is set up within the department of the minister
for economic affairs and finance. It is consulted obligatorily in respect of
fixing the methods of analysis to be imposed upon laboratories responsible for
playing a part in the application of regulations relating to fraud prevention,
as well as on the determination of physical conditions for sample taking.
Copyright 2009
National Law Center for Inter-American Free Trade