Due to the transposition of European Union directives, the Hungarian regulations governing consumer sales contracts will change drastically from January 1, 2022, affecting all businesses that are directly or indirectly “in touch” with consumers. It is worth starting to prepare, and not only for the selling party that contracts directly with the consumer, i.e. distributors in the position of retailers, but also for manufacturers, because new regulations will come into force for them from January 1 next year with Government Decree 373/2021. (VI.30.).
The warranty statement – From the beginning of next year, manufacturers who provide a warranty for the durability of their product – even in the related advertising – will be obliged to provide a so-called provide the consumer with a warranty statement, with prescribed content and in a clearly understandable wording, in Hungarian.
The law means the ability of the product to maintain its required functions and performance under normal use.
The manufacturer’s warranty statement must state the name and address of the party liable for the warranty, indicate the goods covered by the warranty, and state the procedure to be followed by the consumer in order to enforce the warranty and the terms of the warranty, in addition to clearly informing the consumer that this commercial (manufacturer’s) warranty does not affect his or her rights under the warranty.
Next year, not only within two years of the product being placed on the market by the manufacturer, but also within the currently existing so-called The consumer can knock on the manufacturer’s door directly with a product warranty claim, but if the manufacturer guarantees the durability of its product for any period of time, even for a shorter or longer period than the product warranty period, then he must also count on the burden of proof within the framework of this commercial warranty.
There is a huge difference, namely that while the consumer is obliged to prove his product warranty claim against the manufacturer in the event of a dispute, in the event of a defective performance occurring during the manufacturer’s warranty period, if the consumer contacts the manufacturer for repair or product replacement, the burden of proof lies with the manufacturer.
When is the manufacturer exempted from the manufacturer’s warranty? If he proves that the cause of the defect arose after the performance, e.g. by the consumer handling or using the product improperly.
Clarity is very important: – this commercial or manufacturer’s warranty should not be confused with the so-called mandatory warranty that has been in operation in Hungary for a long time and is customary.
The latter is borne by the selling enterprises, depending on the selling price of the durable consumer good, for a period of 1-2-3 years, or by the enterprises in the case of newly built apartments.
The situation of enterprises is becoming more difficult – The terrain of the legal institutions of quality protection will therefore not be easier for enterprises: in addition to the accessory and product warranty, there may be – as currently – the contractual, i.e. voluntary, and as a synonym for this, the so-called manufacturer’s warranty, in connection with which the new regulation also requires the issuance of a manufacturer’s warranty statement with specific content from January 1, 2022, and this document is not the same as the so-called warranty card to be issued by the selling party to the consumer in the case of a mandatory warranty.
