Contratti di vendita di beni conformi 2019/0771 EN

(1)	‘ sales_contract’ means any contract under which the seller transfers or undertakes to transfer ownership of goods to a consumer, and the consumer pays or undertakes to pay the price thereof;

(2)	‘ consumer’ means any natural person who, in relation to contracts covered by this Directive, is acting for purposes which are outside that person's trade, business, craft or profession;

(3)

‘ seller’ means any natural person or any legal person, irrespective of whether privately or publicly owned, that is acting, including through any other person acting in that natural or legal person's name or on that person's behalf, for purposes relating to that person's trade, business, craft or profession, in relation to contracts covered by this Directive;

(4)	‘ producer’ means a manufacturer of goods, an importer of goods into the Union or any person purporting to be a producer by placing its name, trade mark or other distinctive sign on the goods;

(5)

‘ goods’ means:

(a)	any tangible movable items; water, gas and electricity are to be considered as goods within the meaning of this Directive where they are put up for sale in a limited volume or a set quantity;

(b)	any tangible movable items that incorporate or are inter-connected with digital_content or a digital_service in such a way that the absence of that digital_content or digital_service would prevent the goods from performing their functions (‘ goods with digital elements’);

(6)	‘ digital_content’ means data which are produced and supplied in digital form;

(7)

‘ digital_service’ means:

(a)	a service that allows the consumer to create, process, store or access data in digital form; or

(b)	a service that allows the sharing of or any other interaction with data in digital form uploaded or created by the consumer or other users of that service;

(8)	‘ compatibility’ means the ability of the goods to function with hardware or software with which goods of the same type are normally used, without the need to convert the goods, hardware or software;

(9)	‘ functionality’ means the ability of the goods to perform their functions having regard to their purpose;

(10)	‘ interoperability’ means the ability of the goods to function with hardware or software different from those with which goods of the same type are normally used;

(11)

‘ durable_medium’ means any instrument which enables the consumer or the seller to store information addressed personally to that person in a way that is accessible for future reference, for a period of time adequate for the purposes of the information, and which allows the unchanged reproduction of the information stored;

(12)

‘ commercial_guarantee’ means any undertaking by the seller or a producer (the guarantor) to the consumer, in addition to the seller's legal obligation relating to the guarantee of conformity, to reimburse the price paid or to replace, repair or service goods in any way if they do not meet the specifications or any other requirements not related to conformity set out in the guarantee statement or in the relevant advertising available at the time of, or before the conclusion of the contract;

(13)	‘ durability’ means the ability of the goods to maintain their required functions and performance through normal use;

(14)	‘ free_of_charge’ means free of the necessary costs incurred in order to bring the goods into conformity, particularly the cost of postage, carriage, labour or materials;

(15)

‘ public_auction’ means a method of sale where goods or services are offered by the seller to consumers, who attend or are given the possibility to attend the auction in person, through a transparent, competitive bidding procedure run by an auctioneer and where the successful bidder is bound to purchase the goods or services.

Article 12

obligation to notify

Member States may maintain or introduce provisions stipulating that, in order to benefit from the consumer's rights, the consumer has to inform the seller of a lack of conformity within a period of at least 2 months of the date on which the consumer detected such lack of conformity.

Article 13

Remedies for lack of conformity

1. In the event of a lack of conformity, the consumer shall be entitled to have the goods brought into conformity or to receive a proportionate reduction in the price, or to terminate the contract, under the conditions set out in this Article.

2. In order to have the goods brought into conformity, the consumer may choose between repair and replacement, unless the remedy chosen would be impossible or, compared to the other remedy, would impose costs on the seller that would be disproportionate, taking into account all circumstances, including:

(a)	the value the goods would have if there were no lack of conformity;

(b)	the significance of the lack of conformity; and

(c)	whether the alternative remedy could be provided without significant inconvenience to the consumer.

3. The seller may refuse to bring the goods into conformity if repair and replacement are impossible or would impose costs on the seller that would be disproportionate, taking into account all circumstances including those mentioned in points (a) and (b) of paragraph 2.

4. The consumer shall be entitled to either a proportionate reduction of the price in accordance with Article 15 or the termination of the sales_contract in accordance with Article 16 in any of the following cases:

(a)	the seller has not completed repair or replacement or, where applicable, has not completed repair or replacement in accordance with Article 14(2) and (3), or the seller has refused to bring the goods into conformity in accordance with paragraph 3 of this Article;

(b)	a lack of conformity appears despite the seller having attempted to bring the goods into conformity;

(c)	the lack of conformity is of such a serious nature as to justify an immediate price reduction or termination of the sales_contract; or

(d)	the seller has declared, or it is clear from the circumstances, that the seller will not bring the goods into conformity within a reasonable time, or without significant inconvenience for the consumer.

5. The consumer shall not be entitled to terminate the contract if the lack of conformity is only minor. The burden of proof with regard to whether the lack of conformity is minor shall be on the seller.

6. The consumer shall have the right to withhold payment of any outstanding part of the price or a part thereof until the seller has fulfilled the seller's obligations under this Directive. Member States may determine the conditions and modalities for the consumer to exercise the right to withhold the payment.

7. Member States may regulate whether and to what extent a contribution of the consumer to the lack of conformity affects the consumer's right to remedies.

Article 14

Repair or replacement of the goods

1. Repairs or replacements shall be carried out:

(a)	free_of_charge;

(b)	within a reasonable period of time from the moment the seller has been informed by the consumer about the lack of conformity; and

(c)	without any significant inconvenience to the consumer, taking into account the nature of the goods and the purpose for which the consumer required the goods.

2. Where the lack of conformity is to be remedied by repair or replacement of the goods, the consumer shall make the goods available to the seller. The seller shall take back the replaced goods at the seller's expense.

3. Where a repair requires the removal of goods that had been installed in a manner consistent with their nature and purpose before the lack of conformity became apparent, or where such goods are to be replaced, the obligation to repair or replace the goods shall include the removal of the non-conforming goods, and the installation of replacement goods or repaired goods, or bearing the costs of that removal and installation.

4. The consumer shall not be liable to pay for normal use made of the replaced goods during the period prior to their replacement.

Article 27

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 20 May 2019.

For the European Parliament

The President

A. TAJANI

For the Council

The President

G. CIAMBA

(1) OJ C 264, 20.7.2016, p. 57.

(2) Position of the European Parliament of 26 March 2019 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 15 April 2019.

(3) Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, amending Council Directive 93/13/EEC and Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directive 85/577/EEC and Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 304, 22.11.2011, p. 64).

(4) Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 May 1999 on certain aspects of the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees (OJ L 171, 7.7.1999, p. 12).

(5) Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 on the law applicable to contractual obligations (Rome I) (OJ L 177, 4.7.2008, p. 6).

(6) Directive (EU) 2019/770 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2019 on certain aspects concerning contracts for the supply of digital_content and digital_services (see page 1 of this Official Journal).

(7) Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2012 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (OJ L 351, 20.12.2012, p. 1).

(8) Regulation (EU) 2017/2394 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2017 on cooperation between national authorities responsible for the enforcement of consumer protection laws and repealing Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 (OJ L 345, 27.12.2017, p. 1).

(9) Directive 2009/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on injunctions for the protection of consumers' interests (OJ L 110, 1.5.2009, p. 30).

(10) OJ C 369, 17.12.2011, p. 14.

ANNEX

CORRELATION TABLE

Directive 1999/44/EC	This Directive
Article 1(1)	Article 1
Article 1(2)(a)	Article 2, point (2)
Article 1(2)(b), first indent	Article 3(4)(b)
Article 1(2)(b), second and third indents	Article 2, point (5)(a)
Article 1(2)(c)	Article 2, point (3)
Article 1(2)(d)	Article 2, point (4)
Article 1(2)(e)	Article 2, point (12)
Article 1(3)	Article 2, point (15) and Article 3(5)(a)
Article 1(4)	Article 3(2)
Article 2(1)	Article 5
Article 2(2)(a)	Article 6, point (a) and Article 7(1)(b)
Article 2(2)(b)	Article 6, point (b)
Article 2(2)(c)	Article 7(1)(a)
Article 2(2)(d)	Article 7(1)(d)
Article 2(3)	Article 7(5)
Article 2(4)	Article 7(2)
Article 2(5)	Article 8
Article 3(1)	Article 10(1)
Article 3(2)	Article 13(1)
Article 3(3), first subparagraph	Article 13(2) and Article 14(1)(a)
Article 3(3), second subparagraph	Article 13(2)
Article 3(3), third subparagraph	Article 14(1)(b) and (c)
Article 3(4)	Article 2, point (14)
Article 3(5)	Article 13(4)
Article 3(6)	Article 13(5)
Article 4	Article 18
Article 5(1)	Article 10(1), (2), (3), (4) and (5)
Article 5(2)	Article 12
Article 5(3)	Article 11
Article 6(1)	Article 17(1)
Article 6(2)	Article 17(2)
Article 6(3)	Article 17(2)
Article 6(4)	Article 17(4)
Article 6(5)	Article 17(3)
Article 7(1), first subparagraph	Article 21(1)
Article 7(1), second subparagraph	Article 10(6)
Article 7(2)	—
Article 8(1)	Article 3(6) and (7)
Article 8(2)	Article 4
Article 9	Articles 19 and 20
Article 10	Article 22
Article 11(1), first subparagraph	Article 24(1), first subparagraph
Article 11(1), second subparagraph	Article 24(1), third subparagraph
Article 11(2)	Article 24(1), fourth subparagraph
Article 12	Article 25
Article 13	Article 26
Article 14	Article 27

whereas

(18) This Directive should not affect national law to the extent that the matters concerned are not regulated by this Directive, in particular with regard to the legality of the goods, damages and general contract law aspects such as the formation, validity, nullity or effects of contracts.
The same should apply in relation to the consequences of the termination of the contract and to certain aspects regarding repair and replacement that are not regulated in this Directive.
When regulating the rights of parties to withhold the performance of their obligations or part thereof until the other party performs its obligations, Member States should remain free to regulate the conditions and modalities regarding the withholding of payment of the price by the consumer.
Member States should also remain free to regulate the consumer's entitlement to compensation for damage suffered as a consequence of an infringement by the seller of this Directive.
This Directive should also not affect national rules that do not specifically concern consumer contracts and provide for specific remedies for certain types of defects that were not apparent at the time of conclusion of the sales_contract, namely national provisions which may lay down specific rules for the seller's liability for hidden defects.
This Directive should also not affect national laws providing for non-contractual remedies for the consumer, in the event of lack of conformity of goods, against persons in previous links of the chain of transactions, for example manufacturers, or other persons that fulfil the obligations of such persons.

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(20) Member States should remain free to regulate information obligations of the seller in connection with the conclusion of the contract or the duty of the seller to warn the consumer about, for instance, certain characteristics of the good, the suitability of materials provided by the consumer or possible disadvantages resulting from specific requests of the consumer, for example a request by the consumer to use a specific fabric for the tailoring of a ball gown.

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(30) In addition to contractually agreed updates, the seller should also provide updates, including security updates, in order to ensure that goods with digital elements remain in conformity.
The seller's obligation should be limited to updates which are necessary for such goods to maintain their conformity with the objective and subjective requirements for conformity laid down in this Directive.
Unless the parties have contractually agreed otherwise, the seller should not be obliged to provide upgraded versions of the digital_content or digital_service of the goods or to improve or extend the functionalities of goods beyond the conformity requirements.
If an update provided by the seller, or by a third party supplying the digital_content or digital_service under the sales_contract, causes a lack of conformity of the good with digital elements, the seller should be liable for bringing the good into conformity again.
The consumer should remain free to choose whether to install the updates provided.
Where the consumer decides not to install the updates which are necessary for the goods with digital elements to maintain their conformity, the consumer should however not expect such goods to remain in conformity.
The seller should inform the consumer that the consumer's decision not to install updates which are necessary for keeping the goods with digital elements in conformity, including security updates, will affect the seller's liability for conformity of those features of the goods with digital elements which the relevant updates are supposed to maintain in conformity.
This Directive should not affect obligations to provide security updates laid down in other Union law or in national law.

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(31) In principle, in the case of goods with digital elements whereby the digital_content or digital_service incorporated in or inter-connected with the goods is supplied through a single act of supply, the seller should only be liable for a lack of conformity that exists at the time of delivery.
However, the obligation to provide updates should reflect the fact that the digital environment of any such good constantly changes.
Therefore, updates are a necessary tool in order to ensure that the goods are able to function in the same way that they did at the time of delivery.
Furthermore, in contrast to traditional goods, goods with digital elements are not completely separate from the seller's sphere because the seller, or a third person supplying the digital_content or digital_service under the sales_contract, is able to update the goods from a distance, usually over the internet.
Therefore, if the digital_content or digital_service is supplied by a single act of supply, the seller should be liable to provide the updates necessary to keep the goods with digital elements in conformity for a period of time that the consumer can reasonably expect, even if the goods were in conformity at the time of delivery.
The period of time during which the consumer can reasonably expect to receive updates should be assessed based on the type and purpose of the goods and the digital elements, and taking into account the circumstances and nature of the sales_contract.
A consumer would normally expect to receive updates for at least as long as the period during which the seller is liable for a lack of conformity, while in some cases the consumer's reasonable expectation could extend beyond that period, as might be the case particularly with regard to security updates.
In other cases, for instance as regards goods with digital elements the purpose of which is limited in time, the seller's obligation to provide updates would normally be limited to that time.

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(33) Under this Directive, the seller should be obliged to deliver to the consumer goods which are in conformity at the time of delivery.
It is possible that sellers would make use of spare parts in order to fulfil their obligation to repair goods in the event of a lack of conformity that existed at the time of delivery.
While this Directive should not impose an obligation on sellers to ensure the availability of spare parts throughout a period of time as an objective requirement for conformity, it should not affect other provisions of national law obliging the seller, the producer or other person constituting a link in the chain of transactions, to ensure that spare parts are available or to inform consumers about such availability.

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(38) This Directive should not regulate the meaning of ‘delivery’, which should be left to national law, in particular, as regards the question of what the seller has to do in order to fulfil the seller's obligation to deliver the goods.
Furthermore, references to the time of delivery in this Directive should be without prejudice to the rules on the passing of risk provided for in Directive 2011/83/EU and accordingly implemented in the law of the Member States.

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(46) Member States should be allowed to maintain or introduce provisions stipulating that, in order to benefit from the consumer's rights, the consumer has to inform the seller of a lack of conformity within a period not shorter than two months from the date on which the consumer detected such lack of conformity.
Member States should be allowed to ensure that consumers have a higher level of protection, by not introducing such an obligation.

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(53) In order to maintain a balance between the rights and obligations of the contracting parties, the consumer should enjoy the right to terminate the contract only in cases where the lack of conformity is not minor.

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(54) Member States should be able to regulate the conditions under which the performance of the debtor can be fulfilled by another person, for example the conditions under which the seller's obligation to repair a good can be performed by the consumer or a third party at the seller's expense.

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(56) This Directive should not lay down provisions on where the obligations of a debtor have to be performed.
This Directive should, therefore, neither specify the place of delivery, nor prescribe where the repair or replacement should take place; such questions should be left to national law.

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(59) Where the consumer terminates the contract due to the lack of conformity, this Directive should prescribe rules only on the main effects of and modalities for the right of termination, in particular the obligation for the parties to return what they have received.
Thus, the seller should be obliged to refund the price received from the consumer and the consumer should return the goods.

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keyboard_tab Contratti di vendita di beni conformi 2019/0771 EN

Contratti di vendita di beni conformi 2019/0771 EN