November 19, 2024 (press release) –
The Council has today adopted a regulation to shut down the European Online Dispute Resolution Platform (ODR platform) and remove the associated obligations for administrations and online businesses. In line with the Commission’s proposal, the Council considers that the level of performance of the existing ODR platform does not justify the public and private costs required to maintain it.
Next steps
After the Council's adoption of its position in first reading, the text must be voted again on the second reading in the Parliamentary plenary. If it passes without amendments, the legislative act will be adopted.
After being signed by the President of the European Parliament and the President of the Council, the regulation will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and will enter into force on the 20thday following its publication.
Background
In any commercial relationship, traders and consumers may have disputes to resolve (for instance if a product is not delivered on time or in good condition, or if the consumer has not paid the full purchase price). With the development of online shopping, the number of disputes has increased substantially. Solving a dispute in court could be lengthy and involves the intervention of lawyers and procedural costs. There are, however, alternative ways to solve problems without going to court.
The most recent European legislation to regulate out-of-court consumer redress was adopted in 2013 and has not been amended since. The legislative package included two acts: the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) directive and a regulation for Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), which created an online platform to help consumers and traders resolve their differences.
The ODR platform has been in operation since 2016 and it offered different solutions, such as direct negotiations between traders and consumers or the use of a dispute resolution body to handle cases. However, despite a high number of visits, the ODR platform has only enabled an annual average of 200 cases EU wide to be treated by an ADR entity.
On 17 October 2023, the Commission proposed a new package of measures to modernise and simplify the rules governing out-of-court disputes and adapt them to digital markets: a directive amending the ADR directive and a regulation, adopted today by the Council, to repeal the regulation that created the ODR platform.
On 25 September 2024, the Council adopted its negotiating position on the ADR directive, which proposed, among other things, the replacement of the ODR platform by a new digital tool, that had to be developed three months after the entry into force of the revised ADR directive, at the latest. The negotiating mandate also required the Commission to promote the tool and provide for its technical maintenance. The same day, the Council reached a political agreement on the regulation for the discontinuation of the ODR platform, which has been formally adopted today.
- Commission proposal for a regulation with regard to the discontinuation of the ODR Platform
- Consumer protection (background information)
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