French Consumer Law is a comprehensive and comparative overview of French and EU law in this field, covering: advertising, unfair commercial practices, conditions for the validity of contracts, unfair terms, product conformity, latent defects, product safety.

French Consumer Law

Even if certain principles were in place right from the beginnings of the Civil Code, such as the obligation to perform a contract in good faith, the theory of vitiated consent, the obligation of compliance or the warranty against latent defects, which had the purpose of ensuring the balance of the contractual relationship, it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that a true cons …

Development of consumer law

Even if certain principles were in place right from the beginnings of the Civil Code, such as the obligation to perform a contract in good faith, the theory of vitiated consent, the obligation of compliance or the warranty against latent defects, which had the purpose of ensuring the balance of the contractual relationship, it was not until the second half of the twentieth century that a true consumer law came into being.

Its emergence can be explained by the changes in our societies which have become “consumer societies”. Since the 60s and 70s, mass consumption has grown, and mass retail distribution arrived while at the same time neighborhood stores started to disappear, standard form or “adhesion” agreements became increasingly common and used, distribution networks were set up, and products and services became more and more complex. The principles of the Civil Code and the case law up to now have only settled occasional, often extreme cases, but have not intervened in any general way, or systematically interpreted contracts in favor of the consumer or instituted obligations relative to the provision of information and to periods for reflection with a view to remedying the imbalance of power between consumers and traders.

The first law in favor of consumers dates from 1905 . It provided for criminal sanctions for breaches of the duty of loyalty in the presentation of the thing sold, the information relating to it (deception) and its manufacture (forgery). The text thus supplemented the protection of the purchaser provided for by the Civil Code, i.e. primarily vitiated consent and warranty against latent defects. The first manifestation of consumer law was therefore criminal. The next set of laws of any relevance dates back to the 1970s, a period when the face of trade was changing with the development of large-scale retail distribution stores (hypermarkets). In 1972, the first law on door-to-door sales is adopted  to resolve situations where consumers are solicited at their homes and places of work. In 1973, the Royer Law of 27 December 1973 introduced the concept of misleading advertising. Finally, in 1978, the Scrivener Laws  laid down various provisions in favor of the disclosure of information to consumers thus enshrining in French law the sanction for unfair terms in contracts to compensate for the shortcomings of the civil legislation and the traps in standard-form agreements proposed by some traders. The 1980s were marked by the technological developments likely to present a danger to consumers: an initial law in 1983  regulated consumer safety and amended the 1905 law. The 1990s saw a major turning point in consumer law. Besides the law authorizing comparative advertising in France which was adopted in 1992 , in 1993 the legislator assembled within a Consumer Code all texts laying down the rules relating to individual or collective relations between consumers and traders . The Code has since undergone many amendments especially due to the adoption in EU law of a variety of instruments protecting consumers from the mid 1980s onwards. In addition to the transposition of European legislation, the French legislator has also intervened to strengthen the protection of consumers e.g. the Hamon Law of 17 March 2014, which notably created the possibility of bringing class actions in France, changed the rules applicable to canvassing and laid down protective provisions for online purchases.

In 2016, the government re-codified the Consumer Code “in order to develop its structure and adapt it to legislative developments since its publication as well as to include non-codified provisions falling within the domain of the legislation and concerning its scope of application”. Ordinance No 2016-301 , which came into force on 1 July 2016 aims to “improve the coherence of the legal provisions, to the benefit of users”, once again carried out a re-codification “on the basis of established law”. It modifies the structure of the Consumer Code - criminal offenses, sanctions and procedure are now dealt with in different sections - rewrites certain provisions where compliance with EU law was questionable and distinguishes the powers of the administration in matters of consumer law from the rules included in the Commercial Code. An introductory article now defines the concepts of consumer,  non-trader and trader (non-professional/professional), replicating the EU law definitions, which should put an end to the hesitations of the courts in the matter. Also with a view to facilitating the proper transposition of EU law, the introductory article has been extended with thirteen new definitions, ranging from the concept of online marketplace operator to producer, interoperability, durability, compatibility, digital service or content, or commercial practice, following the adoption of Ordinance No 2021-1247 of 29 September 2021 on the legal guarantee of conformity for goods, digital content and digital services  and Ordinance No 2021-1734 of 22 December 2021 on better enforcement and modernization of the Union's consumer protection rules . 

Whole facets of consumer protection legislation remain outside of the Consumer Code however. The Civil Code still contains provisions relating to warranty against latent defects, consent, the obligation to deliver or defective product liability. More recently, the EGalim law of 30 October 2018  of which the provisions have been partially integrated into the Commercial Code and the Rural and Maritime Fisheries Code, has provided a framework for promotions in the food products sector, but more with a view to protecting small agricultural producers than consumers, even though the latter will be directly affected by the regulations.

Initially distinct from consumer law, the civil law now paradoxically finds its inspiration from it. The reform of the Civil Code in respect of the law of contracts, initiated by the Ordinance of 10 February 2016 , not only borrows certain protective judge-made remedies e.g. new Article 1137 on fraudulent non-disclosure (dol par réticence) or the possibility of unilaterally setting prices (new Article 1164), but also, in our view pointlessly and inconsistently, includes new provisions which are directly inspired by consumer law such as the obligation to provide pre-contractual information (new Article 1112-1) or the concept of unfair terms (new Article1171), which will most certainly generate conflicts in the case law and be a source of legal uncertainty.

Law of 1 August 1905, on fraud and forgeries in matters of goods and services. 

Law No 72-1137 of 22 December 1972 on consumer protection with regard to canvassing and door-to-door sales.

Ordinance No 2016-31 of 10 February 2016 on the reform of contract law, the general regime of obligations and proof of obligations.

Law No 78-23 of 10 January 1978, on consumer protection and information for products and services; Law 78-22 of 10 January 1978, on consumer protection and information for certain credit transactions.

Law No 83-660 of 22 July 1983 on consumer safety.

Law No 92-60 of 18 January 1992 to strengthen consumer protection.

Law No 93-949 of 26 July 1993 on the Consumer Code.

Ordinance No 2016-301 of 14 March 2016 on the legislative part of the Consumer Code.

Law No 2018-938 of 30 October 2018 for the balance of commercial relations in the agriculture and food sector and healthy, sustainable and accessible food for all (EGalim Law).

French Consumer Law

2. Development of consumer law

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Les notions juridiques connexes

2. Development of consumer law

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Les notions juridiques connexes

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