Consumers and the internal market for services: Shortcomings of the “new approach” of the Community

✍ Scribed by European Consumer Law Group

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1990
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 528 KB
• Volume: 13
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0168-7034
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00411872

✦ Synopsis

The paper discusses the "new approach" of the Community in the area of services, namely the principle that every service --like every good --should be allowed to circulate freely in the entire~Internal Market provided it meets the standards of EEC law and of the country of origin. There are some exceptions to this principle, especially in the insurance area (market segregation in the industry's interest). The paper points out that the "new approach" might endanger consumer protection of Member States unless adequate standards of the receiving country exist. ECLG makes a number of suggestions to overcome the lacunae left by the "new approach," especially by opting for minimal harmonisation, by applying rules of private internal law under the Rome Convention, and by providing for safeguard clauses.