Parliament adopts measures for control in concluding consumer contracts

Courts will ex officio monitor whether there are unfair terms in consumer contracts, MPs decided at second reading on December 11. This also applies to contracts concluded with banks, monopoly companies, service providers, mobile operators, credit companies, etc., which also include pre-established general terms and conditions.

The amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure adopted today oblige the court, when requested to issue an order for execution of an obligation under a contract with a consumer, to require the contract itself, together with all its annexes and general conditions. If, after considering them, the court finds that there is an unlawful clause in the contract that affects the consumer, it will be able to reject the application for fulfillment of the obligations.

This change in the Code of Civil Procedure is in response to an appeal by the European Commission in January that the Bulgarian state does not provide sufficient protection for consumers against monopolies and relations with banks.