New Requirements on Retailers to Inform Customers from 1/10/15 of Forms of Alternative Dispute Resol
As from the 1st October 2015 it will be an offence for any business selling goods or services to people buying other than for the purpose of a trade, profession, business or craft to not inform those customers whose complaints they do not resolve, of the details of an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) service that covers such transactions, is accessible and operational online, and has been approved by Trading Standards. Further, the business must say whether or not they will participate in a form of ADR. As from January 2016 the business will also have to include on its website a link to a special European Commission website that will direct dissatisfied customers to an approved ADR provider.
If you sell products or services to consumers, are you ready for such laws? Do you know how such ADR services operate and whether or not you would wish to participate? Would it be in your interest to participate? Who pays and what is the cost? Do you have to participate? How would such be impacted by any small claims court proceedings , adverse consumer reviews, adverse customer tweets etc? What about new complaint services like Resolver.co.uk? What are the implications for you if you sell largely through a third party market platform, such as eBay or Amazon?
These laws will significantly increase the numbers of complaints and disputes from consumers. How will you deal with them to ensure your business does not suffer from your ignorance of these laws and how best to benefit from them.
I am organising a conference to provide all the information - see the conference website.
