Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title

Article 3Scope

1.This Directive shall apply, under the conditions and to the extent set out in its provisions, to any contract concluded between a trader and a consumer. It shall also apply to contracts for the supply of water, gas, electricity or district heating, including by public providers, to the extent that these commodities are provided on a contractual basis.

2.If any provision of this Directive conflicts with a provision of another Union act governing specific sectors, the provision of that other Union act shall prevail and shall apply to those specific sectors.

3.This Directive shall not apply to contracts:

(a)for social services, including social housing, childcare and support of families and persons permanently or temporarily in need, including long-term care;

(b)for healthcare as defined in point (a) of Article 3 of Directive 2011/24/EU, whether or not they are provided via healthcare facilities;

(c)for gambling, which involves wagering a stake with pecuniary value in games of chance, including lotteries, casino games and betting transactions;

(d)for financial services;

(e)for the creation, acquisition or transfer of immovable property or of rights in immovable property;

(f)for the construction of new buildings, the substantial conversion of existing buildings and for rental of accommodation for residential purposes;

(g)which fall within the scope of Council Directive 90/314/EEC of 13 June 1990 on package travel, package holidays and package tours(1);

(h)which fall within the scope of Directive 2008/122/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 January 2009 on the protection of consumers in respect of certain aspects of timeshare, long-term holiday product, resale and exchange contracts(2);

(i)which, in accordance with the laws of Member States, are established by a public office-holder who has a statutory obligation to be independent and impartial and who must ensure, by providing comprehensive legal information, that the consumer only concludes the contract on the basis of careful legal consideration and with knowledge of its legal scope;

(j)for the supply of foodstuffs, beverages or other goods intended for current consumption in the household, and which are physically supplied by a trader on frequent and regular rounds to the consumer’s home, residence or workplace;

(k)for passenger transport services, with the exception of Article 8(2) and Articles 19 and 22;

(l)concluded by means of automatic vending machines or automated commercial premises;

(m)concluded with telecommunications operators through public payphones for their use or concluded for the use of one single connection by telephone, Internet or fax established by a consumer.

4.Member States may decide not to apply this Directive or not to maintain or introduce corresponding national provisions to off-premises contracts for which the payment to be made by the consumer does not exceed EUR 50. Member States may define a lower value in their national legislation.

5.This Directive shall not affect national general contract law such as the rules on the validity, formation or effect of a contract, in so far as general contract law aspects are not regulated in this Directive.

6.This Directive shall not prevent traders from offering consumers contractual arrangements which go beyond the protection provided for in this Directive.