Considerations regarding consumer protection in Romanian and European law. The notion of consumer

AuthorViorel B?nulescu
PositionBucharest University of Economic Studies, Doctoral School, viorel_banulescu@yahoo.co.uk.
Pages20-26
Considerations regarding consumer protection
in Romanian and European law.
The notion of consumer
PhD. student Viorel BNULESCU1
Abstract
Ensuring a high level of protection of consumer r ights represents a concern of the
Europea n Union. The consumer is, in the broadest sense, the person who pu rchases goods
and services. The policy of consumer protection is ba sed on the presumption of vulnerability
of the individual in relation to the pr ofessionals.
Keywords: consumer , p rofessional, vulne rability, obj ective accept ance, subje ctive
accep tance, competiti ve mar ket.
JEL Classification: K20, K22, K23
: 1. Preliminary considerations
The treaties that established the European Communities did not give
importance to the aspects referring to consumer2 protection because, on one hand,
the process of integrating the markets was at the beginning, and, on the other hand,
on a social plan, the concept3 of consumer had not yet been affirmed. We cannot say
that these aspects were totally unknown to the redactors of the founding treaties of
the European Communities. By analysing the dispositions in the E.E.C., we notice
that certain stipulations have been included regarding the raising of the standards of
living and the improvement of the living conditions. These dispositions could be
considered to be preceding a social policy that will be configured afterwards. The
Maastricht Treaty introduced in the European Community Treaty stipulations
consecrated to consumer protection. Therefore, art.129 A4 from the Maastricht
Treaty constituting the European Union legislate distinctively the aspects concerning
consumer protection. The introduction of the dispositions that refer to consumer
protection had as scope the promotion of health, of legal and economic interests, and
1 Viorel Bnulescu Bucharest University of Economic Studies, Doctoral School,
viorel_banulescu@yahoo.co.uk.
2 The Treaty of Rome used the notion of user.
3 The first organisms of consumer protection, as well as the first no rmative acts which regulated this
matter appeared in Western Europe in the 1980s (for a detailed analysis of these aspects, see
Beauchard J., The righ of distribution and consumption”, P.U.F., Paris, 1996, p. 22)
4 (1) The community contributes in the insurance of a high level of protection of the consumer via:
a) measures adopted in accordance with article 100a in the realization of the intern market
b) specific actions th at uphold and complete the policy of the member states in order to protect the
security, health and the economic interests of the consumer and the insurance of their proper
information.

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