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New regulations on compensation for damages to consumers

This article provides information on the latest regulations relating to consumer compensation. These regulations are intended to protect the interests of consumers, ensuring that they are fairly compensated when they encounter substandard products or services. Understanding these regulations helps consumers and businesses comply with the law and effectively exercise their rights and obligations.

On June 20, 2023, the National Assembly passed the Consumer Rights Protection Law 2023. This law takes effect from July 1, 2024.

1. Add more subjects to compensate for damages

In Article 34 of the Law on Consumer Protection 2023, additional entities are responsible for compensating for damages in cases where defective products and goods provided by them cause damage to the life, health, or property of consumers, even if they do not know/are not at fault. Specifically, the following business organizations and individuals:

- Manufacture or import products and goods.

- Attaching a trade name to a product or goods or using a trademark or other commercial indication to identify the manufacturer or importer of the product or goods.

- The party that acts as a commercial intermediary with products and goods. In which, based on Chapter V of the 2005 Law on Commerce, commercial intermediary activities include representing traders, commercial brokerage, consignment of goods purchase and sale, commercial agency, etc.

- The party directly supplying goods and products to consumers.

- Other relevant organizations and individuals.

If the remaining subjects cannot be identified, the party directly supplying products and goods to consumers must be responsible for compensating consumers for damages, unless otherwise provided by law.

If multiple organizations or individuals doing business above cause damage, the parties must jointly compensate the consumer for the damage. Compensation is made according to agreement and is regulated by civil law and other regulations.

Thus, compared to the provisions of Article 23 of the Law on Consumer Protection 2010, the new Law has added 02 more subjects responsible for compensation for damages if products and goods are defective, affecting consumer rights or even causing damage to consumers:

- Commercial intermediary.

- Other relevant individuals and organizations as prescribed.

2. Additional cases exempted from compensation for damages

Article 35 of the Law on Consumer Rights Protection 2023 has added cases of exemption from liability for compensation for damages, including:

- When it is proven that it is impossible to detect a defective product or goods with the world's level of science and technology at the time the product or goods caused damage.

- Having applied all negotiation and conciliation measures and having received full information from the consumer, the consumer still deliberately uses defective products and goods, causing damage.

- Other cases.

Meanwhile, the old Law only stipulates one case, which is when it can be proven that the defective goods could not be detected with the scientific and technical level at the time the goods were supplied to consumers.