This is why the Consumer Protection Civil Forum was born.
The Ministry of National Economy, which is responsible for consumer protection, actively and constructively cooperates with all actors of the consumer protection institutional system in order to protect Hungarian families. At Wednesday's meetings convened by the ministry, both the representatives of civil organizations and the presidents of the conciliation bodies expressed their commitment to the further strengthening of consumer protection, and the parties also decided to create a new consultative forum.
- the ministry wrote in its statement.
In the domestic institutional system, in addition to the Ministry of National Economy responsible for consumer protection and the government offices acting in the authority of consumer protection, consumer protection associations and conciliation bodies also perform extremely important tasks. Therefore, the representatives of the department agreed on coordinated implementation of tasks and even closer cooperation with the heads of consumer protection associations and conciliation bodies.
The announcement drew attention to the fact that consumer protection associations play an important role in increasing consumer awareness. For this reason, the Consumer Protection Civil Forum is established, which discusses current consumer protection issues in regular meetings and makes proposals to increase the effectiveness of consumer protection.
In the framework of the cooperation, in addition to continuous consultation, the Ministry of National Economy supports NGOs in maintaining the free telephone customer service and in increasing the consumer awareness of school students, during which it also plans to hold joint presentations with NGOs for school-aged children.
As of January 1, 2024, the Ministry responsible for consumer protection will provide professional supervision over the conciliation bodies that can be used for the quick, free and simple settlement of legal disputes between consumers and businesses. Within this framework, professional consultations are ongoing between the ministry and the presidents of the regional conciliation bodies for the uniform application of the law. At the meeting, in addition to discussing current topics, the parties also reviewed possible directions for the possible expansion of the powers of the conciliation bodies and increasing the awareness of the bodies.
Bence Gerlaki, Deputy State Secretary responsible for economic development strategy and investment, consumer protection and trade, said:
the government and the Ministry of National Economy do their best to enforce consumer rights and thus protect Hungarian families, for this purpose they cooperate closely with other actors of the consumer protection institutional system and pay special attention to strengthening consumer awareness in order to prevent violations.
The members of the Consumer Protection Civil Forum are: Baranya County Consumer Protection Association, Southern Great Plain Regional Consumer Protection Association, Association for the Development of Digital Communities, Consumer and Patient Rights Interest Protection Association, National Association of Consumer Protection Associations, Hungarian Association of Consumer Advocates, FOK Association of Consumer Advocates and Environmental Advocates, Central Hungarian Consumer Protection Association, Nimbusz Consumer Protection Association.
Featured image: Zsolt Szigetváry | Source: MTI/MTVA
