Czech consumers received significant help from the European Consumer Centre last year. Its lawyers successfully resolved 72% of their disputes with traders from other EU countries, Norway, Iceland and the UK, mainly in the area of online shopping. The highest amount recovered out of court was almost €170,000 after an initially unsuccessful claim of a broken bicycle frame from a German retailer. The Czech office of…

The nightmares of online shopping are that something else is delivered, the goods arrive broken, nothing is delivered or that the seller doesn’t refund the money after withdrawal. About 3% of internet users fall victim to fraud each year. The European Consumer Centre by the Czech Trade Inspection Authority advises on how to prevent problems and how to get out of them. If the consumer unpacks the parcel with…

The worsening epidemic situation in Europe may encourage people to buy caravans or motorhomes. But this is being exploited by scammers who post an offer for a relatively cheap second-hand vehicle on a mainstream advertising site and wait for someone to catch on and send thousands of euros to their account for a non-existent car. “A Czech couple were recently tempted by the idea of having an older caravan for 5…

A record 170,000 consumers benefited from the free services of the European Consumer Centres Network in the year of the coronavirus pandemic. Its lawyers either advised or directly helped them resolve their dispute with a vendor from another EU country and recover € 4 million, i.e more than CZK 104 million in total. These often involved non-refund of money for cancelled flights, tours and accommodation, but also…