Since its formation in November in November 2016, the National Service of the Consumer Ombudsman (SNMC) has published its first report covering the first two years of operation which totalled 619 requests for intervention on consumer affairs.
The service deals with consumer contract disputes between professionals and individuals in order to settle disagreements in an extrajudicial way, with the support of a mediator who supervises the parties concerned.
Since November 2016, the 619 requests received have included 305 requests for information and 234 requests for mediation under its jurisdiction. The latter are divided into the following subjects: construction (82), automobile (22), insurance (15), real estate (25), law firms (8), transport (13), e-commerce (5), household appliances (3) and others (61). For the 114 mediations closed before 20 November 2018, an agreement could be found in 104 of the cases, which corresponds to a success rate of more than 91%. The average amount of litigation was €12,000. Processing and mediations on other cases are still ongoing.
56 requests for mediation fell within the competence of a specialised entity, and were therefore transmitted to them or to a body competent in the matter. 8 applications were declared inadmissible.
In line with the strategy to promote corporate social responsibility, Luxembourg companies can also apply to the consumer ombudsman to settle a dispute, a rarity in Europe.
