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

While former Article L. 121-23 of the Consumer Code only laid down a mandatory formalism at the stage of conclusion of the contract signed following canvassing, current Article L. 221-5, I  imposes a compulsory pre-contractual phase, during which the professional must communicate to the consumer:
 - the essential characteristics of the good, service , digital content or digital service; according  …

Pre-contractual information

While former Article L. 121-23 of the Consumer Code only laid down a mandatory formalism at the stage of conclusion of the contract signed following canvassing, current Article L. 221-5, I  imposes a compulsory pre-contractual phase, during which the professional must communicate to the consumer:

 - the essential characteristics of the good, service , digital content or digital service; according to the courts, information on the essential characteristics of a photovoltaic system sold is sufficient when it enables the purchaser to compare the seller's proposal in terms of price with competing offers, in particular during the withdrawal period and to ascertain that all the components necessary for the operation of the system have been delivered and installed, before signing the certificate of completion of work ; 

- the price of the good or service  pursuant to Articles L. 112-1 and L. 112-4; 

- the date or time at which the professional undertakes to deliver the goods or perform the service , the digital content or digital service;  

- information relating to identity , postal , telephone and electronic contact details the terms of termination, methods of settling disputes, other contractual terms and conditions  and, where applicable, the costs of using remote communication technology, the existence of codes of conduct and financial sureties and guarantees; 

- where applicable, information regarding legal guarantees, functionalities, compatibility and interoperability of the digital content, digital service or goods with digital elements, other contractual terms and conditions and, where applicable, the existence of any software installation restrictions; 

- the possibility of recourse to a consumer mediator;

-  when the right of withdrawal exists, the conditions, time-limits  and procedures for the exercise of this right  and the standard withdrawal form , the conditions of presentation and particulars of which are set out in the annex to Article R. 221-1 of the Consumer Code;

-  where appropriate, the fact that the consumer bears the costs of returning the goods in the event of withdrawal;

-  information on the consumer's obligation to pay costs when he exercises his right of withdrawal from a contract for the supply of services, water, gas or electricity and district heating, whose performance he expressly requested before the end of the withdrawal period ;

-  when the right of withdrawal cannot be exercised under Article L. 221-2, due to the subject matter of the contract, the information that the consumer does not benefit from this right or, where appropriate, the circumstances in which the consumer loses his right of withdrawal;

- the application of a customized price based on automated decision making, if relevant;

In the event of a sale by public auction, the information relating to the identity and the postal, telephone and electronic contact details of the professional provided for in 4° of Article L. 221-5, I may be replaced by those of the representative.

According to Article L. 221-8, this information must be provided on paper or, subject to the consumer's consent, on another durable medium. The burden of proof of compliance with the obligation of pre-contractual information lies with the professional .

Article L. 225-1, II specifies that: “In addition to the information provided for in I, any professional, prior to the conclusion of a contract for the provision of services and, where there is no contract, prior to the performance of the service, shall provide the additional information provided for in Article L. 111-2”.

CA Rennes, 4 July 2014, LawLex201400002290JBJ, holding that the purchase order which only describes the services proposed very briefly, with no details on the quantities or methods of performance, does not meet the formal requirements of the Consumer Code; CA Paris, 23 June 2016, LawLex201600001236JBJ: purchase order briefly mentioning the nature and technical characteristics of the goods sold and not allowing the customer to check that the goods delivered are indeed those ordered; CA Paris, 8 September 2016, LawLex201600001499JBJ: no  indication of the brand name, the model and the technical characteristics of the items ordered items; CA Rennes, 11 October 2019, LawLex201900001212JBJ, no indication of the number and model of the photovoltaic panels to be provided, nor of the installation method used; see also CA Poitiers, 12 May 2017, LawLex201700000906JBJ. Cf. CA Poitiers, 31 October 2017, LawLex201700001779JBJ, considering that the designation of the nature and characteristics of the thing is detailed enough in a contract which indicates the number of panels installed, the certified standard, other material delivered and their brands; CA Lyon, 26 April 2018, LawLex201800000643JBJ, stressing that the Consumer Code does not require an off-premises contract to specify the weight, composition, yield, production capacity or the performance of the thing. 

CA Riom, 16 October 2019, LawLex201900001242JBJ.

 These costs are calculated in accordance with Article L. 221-25 (former Article L. 121-21-5) Consumer Code.

Consumer Code, Art. L. 221-9: "The professional provides the consumer with a dated copy of the contract concluded off-premises, on paper signed by the parties or, with the consumer's agreement, on another durable medium, confirming the express commitment of the parties. 

The contract includes all the information provided for in Article L. 221-5. 

The contract mentions, where relevant, the express agreement of the consumer for the provision of digital content without material support before the expiration of the withdrawal period and, in this case, the waiver of the latter to exercise his or her right of withdrawal.

The contract is accompanied by the standard withdrawal form referred to in 7° of Article L. 221-5."

CA Paris, 26 October 2023, LawLex202300013571JBJ.

CA Paris, 10 October 2019, LawLex201900001213JBJ, considering that the Consumer Code does not require, subject to nullity, that the order form for equipment sold should detail the unit price of each component part of the kit or the cost of labor, but only that it should indicate an overall price; 17 October 2019, LawLex201900001241JBJ, considering that a purchase order may indicate only the global price of the service, without having to detail its components or mention the cost of labor. But see CA Amiens, 22 August 2017, LawLex201700001396JBJ, finding that the contract which indicates only a global price without detailing the cost of each service sold, including those subscribed as options, is void; CA Reims, 10 January 2020, LawLex202000000083JBJ: the purchase order must specify the unit prices of the various components of the installation; Cass civ. 1re, 2 June 2021, LawLex202100005409JBJ, the reference to the unit price of each component of a photovoltaic installation, acquired following a door-to-door sale, is not required by law so that in the absence of such a reference, the contract may not be declared void.

 CA Paris, 8 September 2016, LawLex201600001499JBJ; CA Poitiers, 31 October 2017, LawLex201700001779JBJ; CA Grenoble, 15 May 2018, LawLex201800000738JBJ; Cass. 1re civ., 1 March 2023, LawLex202300002854JBJ, noting that in the absence of a provisional schedule of the promised services, an order form contains irregularities that may justify its cancellation, when the contract involves both the physical transactions of delivery and installation of the equipment ordered, as well as administrative formalities, and it is impossible to determine which services correspond to the indicated delivery date; CA Nancy, 6 June 2024, LawLex202400004272JBJ; CA Douai, 6 June 2024, LawLex202400004277JBJ: the order form, which, while providing for the physical delivery and installation of the equipment, as well as administrative procedures, only indicates a delivery date of 2 to 8 weeks,  without distinguishing the services concerned, does not allow the consumer to determine with sufficient precision when the professional will perform his various obligations, with the result that the contract of sale or supply concluded off-premises is liable to be invalid; Cass. 1re civ., 10 July 2024, LawLex202400005307JBJ: invalidity of the purchase order indicating the delivery date of panels, without specifying the work schedule or duration, while the off-premises contract involved not only delivery but also installation and insulation work for the ordered equipment; CA Versailles, 8 October 2024, LawLex202400007666JBJ. Cf. CA Pau, 16 July 2024, LawLex202400005521JBJ: validity of the purchase order for a photovoltaic installation, which distinguishes between delivery deadlines, no later than 28 February 2016, and installation deadlines, within 90 days, including the administrative formalities and signing of the electricity purchase contract, which must inevitably commence upon delivery of the equipment.

The direct seller whose name must appear on an off-premises contract is not necessarily the company on whose behalf the sales are made, but may be the seller (employee or commercial agent) who is physically present at the consumer's side, Cass. crim., 29 January 2019, LawLex201900000169JBJ; also see CA Paris, 17 October 2019, LawLex201900001241JBJ, considering that the purchase order which only indicates the first name of the direct seller, but includes his signature and, in a box, the name of the supplier, complies with legal requirements; CA Pau, 6 December 2019, LawLex201900001507JBJ, holding that the contract which does not include the name of the direct seller, but only that of the supplier, does not comply with legal requirements.

CA Paris, 19 September 2024, LawLex202400006844JBJ: a contract of sale for a photovoltaic installation concluded outside of business premises is invalid when no information on the geographical coverage of the contract or the seller's insurance coverage appears on the order form, in violation of Article R. 111-2 of the Consumer Code.

CA Paris, 19 September 2024, LawLex202400006844JBJ, specifying that the provisions of Article L. 111-2 of the Consumer Code (referred to in Article L. 221-5), that all professionals, prior to the conclusion of a contract for the provision of services and, where there is no written contract, prior to the performance of the service, must make available to or provide the consumer with, in a legible and comprehensible manner, information relating to their contact details, to its service provision activity and to the other contractual conditions, as well as information relating to its business liability insurance, the contact details of its insurer and the insurance contract cover, pursuant to Article L. 242-1, which refers to Article L. 221-9, which refers to Article 221-5.

CA Paris, 5 October 2017, LawLex201700001613JBJ, which specifies that specifying a withdrawal period of 7 days instead of 14 days is equivalent to a failure to provide information and may result in the cancellation of the off-premises contract.J.

CA Lyon, 16 January 2020, LawLex202000000084JBJ: a license agreement for the operation of a website that does not include any information on the time-limit and conditions for exercising the right of withdrawal is null and void; CA Versailles, 28 January 2020, LawLex202000000138JBJ.

French Consumer Law

459. Pre-contractual information

Demandez un accès gratuit
au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise

Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

459. Pre-contractual information

Demandez un accès gratuit au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise

Les décisions de justice citées dans ce paragraphe :

Les notions juridiques connexes

Demandez un accès gratuit
au contenu exclusif Livv – juristes d’entreprise