Comparison

Abstract

German, English and Italian law have distinctly different backgrounds both in terms of unfair commercial practices regulations and in terms of the benchmarks that were applied prior to the introduction of the average consumer benchmark by the CJEU. Courts and enforcement authorities in all three Member States now apply the average consumer benchmark as prescribed by the CJEU. It is interesting to note, however, that in none of the three Member States does the application of the benchmark reflect the same high expectations as the CJEUs case law with regard to the behaviour of the average consumer. In this sense, EU-conform application of the benchmark has not—yet—been achieved. There are also still considerable differences in the application of the benchmarks between the three Member States, e.g., in terms of the degree to which the average consumer is to be regarded as vulnerable and in terms of the degree to which the target group and vulnerable group benchmarks are applied.