NEW AMENDMENTS TO REGULATION ON CONTRACTS CONCLUDED OUTSIDE THE WORKPLACE
With the Regulation on Amending the Regulation on Contracts Concluded Outside the Business Premises (The Amendment Regulation), published in the Official Gazette dated 23.08.2024, certain amendments have been made to the Regulation on Contracts Concluded Outside the Business Premises (Regulation) which are as follows:
* Exclusions to the scope of application of the Regulation are extended
With the Amendment Regulation, it has been stipulated that the provisions of the Regulation shall not apply to contracts related to "sales made in shopping centers, sales of goods or services not exceeding 250.00 Turkish Lira, cleaning services, installation, maintenance, and repair of goods, accommodation, transportation of goods, car rental, food and beverage supply, and the utilization of leisure time for entertainment or relaxation purposes, which are required to be performed on a specific date or within a specified period."
* Preliminary information conditions of the consumer and mandatory content of the contract are regulated.
In cases where the consumer has the right of withdrawal, it is regulated that the consumer should be informed about the conditions, duration, procedure regarding exercise of such right, the conditions under which the right of withdrawal may be lost and that the consumer cannot benefit from the right of withdrawal in cases where the right of withdrawal cannot be exercised. With the amendment to Regulation; the telephone number and/or e-mail address to which the consumer can send a short message has been added to the contact information. It is obligatory to add the province and district where the contract is established and the telephone number where the consumer can send a text message to which the withdrawal notification will be made to the contract, and it is regulated that the consumer must be informed that it is a condition to apply to the mediator before filing a lawsuit.
* For the contracts where the consumer can exercise his/her right of withdrawal, such statements to be written in his/her own handwriting.
The consumer; in contracts where the right of withdrawal can be exercised; “I have been informed that I have the right to withdraw within fourteen days and that I cannot exercise this right verbally. I received a copy of the contract and the sample withdrawal form by hand.”, in cases where the right of withdrawal cannot be exercised; “I am aware that I cannot exercise my right of withdrawal in this contract.”, and in cases where the right of withdrawal may be lost; “If the packaging or protective elements of the goods subject to this contract are opened; I am aware that I will lose my right of withdrawal.” must write the statements in their own handwriting.
* Regulations have been made in terms of the right of withdrawal.
In terms of the right of withdrawal; only the seller is obliged to take back the goods within 14 days from the date of receipt of the withdrawal notification, and if the goods are not taken back within this period, the consumer is not obliged to preserve the goods. Among the exceptions to the right of withdrawal; contracts for services whose performance is started with the consent of the consumer before the expiry of the right of withdrawal period and the concept of “digital content” has been removed from the relevant article. Unless otherwise agreed by the parties, the consumer will be able to exercise the right of withdrawal even if the consumer has opened the packaging after receiving the goods and accessed the digital content presented in the material environment.
* Regulations have been made on the documents that sellers or suppliers operating within the scope of the Regulation must submit when applying for an authorisation certificate.
With the amendments to Regulation, it become possible to submit a registration certificate instead of the seller or provider activity certificate, a business account summary instead of the most recent balance sheet and income statement, or an opening balance sheet and attendance form if they start a new business. Additional information and documents may be requested by the provincial directorate in order to protect the health and safety and economic interests of consumers.
* Changes have been made in terms of cancellation of the authorisation certificate.
It is regulated that if the renewal application is made before the expire of validity period, the authorization certificate may be extended for one month, and the authorization certificate may be annulled as a result of the detection of practices contrary to the Regulation. It is obligatory to renew authorisation certificates of sales outside the workplace, whose validity period continues from 01/04/2025 to this date, and the Regulation will be effective on 01/01/2025.
Conclusion
With the light of amendments to Regulation, it is aimed for consumers to access their rights more comfortably and act more consciously in a changing and developing world. We will follow to the extent that such amendments will provide more protection in favor of consumers or not.