What to do

Generally speaking, whenever a problem arises in purchasing a product or providing a service, the Consumer is invited to activate the following tools:

File a complaint

In case of problems related to the purchase of a product or the provision of a service, first of all, the Consumer has the possibility of forwarding a complaint directly to the Professional in order to expose the problem and explore possible solutions.

You must contact the Professional's customer service, whose contact details are usually listed on the company's website. The Professional is required to provide all information relating to the causes of the problem and where this cannot be directly resolved, he has the duty to direct the Consumer towards the initiatives to be undertaken.

Contact a Consumer Association

If the complaint sent to the Professional has not been effective and has not received a response, or if the response received is not sufficient to resolve the reported problem, the Consumer may contact one of the Consumer and User Associations among those registered in the national list of the Ministry of Economic Development and seek assistance in resolving the problem that has arisen with the Professional.

Consumer Associations are non-profit organizations whose sole statutory purpose is to safeguard and defend the interests of Consumers. The most representative Associations at national level are registered in the single national list held by the Ministry of Economic Development pursuant to art. 137 of the Consumer Code.

Activate an ADR procedure

If, following the complaint, the Professional responds negatively or does not respond at all, the Consumer can activate an ADR procedure. These procedures have the advantage of offering a fast and effective solution to conflicts between Professionals and Consumers (as well as streamlining the judicial burden) since they proceed through "alternative" channels without resorting to the judicial authority. Furthermore, it prevents Consumers, discouraged by the costs and duration of the judicial procedure, from giving up the protection of their rights.

What are ADR procedures?

ADR is an acronym for “Alternative Dispute Resolution”, an English term which indicates “alternative dispute resolution”.

These are out-of-court dispute resolution procedures that comply with the requirements set out in Title II-bis of the Consumer Code (art. 141, paragraph 1, letter g).

The matter is regulated by articles 141-141 decies of the Consumer Code. ADR procedures were introduced into the Italian legal system with Legislative Decree 6 August 2015, n. 130 which implemented the ADR directive for consumers 2013/11/EU.

These are voluntary procedures that are activated at the request of the Consumer, who will be the plaintiff in the procedure. They are mostly free procedures or subject to “merely symbolic costs” for the consumer (art. 141 quater, paragraph 3, letter c). Please note that in the context of ADR procedures, the Parties are not obliged to provide legal assistance. The ADR Body registered in the list must be able to have Mediators in charge of resolving disputes who possess adequate and specific training requirements to be demonstrated through qualifications and any certifications, based on what is provided for by the individual competent authorities (art. 141-bis, paragraph 4, letter a).

ADR bodies are required to have obligations of transparency, impartiality and fairness towards the parties to the proceedings and towards consumers in general: in particular, ADR bodies, through annual reports, must inform the "public" about the procedures, the types of disputes, the rules governing the submission of complaints, the criteria guiding the adoption of decisions, etc. (art. 141 bis).

Reasons for rejecting a particular dispute

The reasons for which it may refuse to deal with a specific dispute are indicated in art. 2 of the Regulations on Mediation in Consumer Matters. The request to start the ADR procedure may be rejected by the Conciliation Body Concordia et Ius srl for one of the following reasons:

• The Consumer did not attempt to contact the Professional concerned to discuss his complaint nor did he seek, as a first step, to resolve the matter directly with the Professional.
• The controversy is either frivolous or reckless.
• The dispute is being examined or has already been examined by another Conciliation Body or by a Jurisdictional Body.
• The value of the dispute is lower or higher than a pre-established monetary threshold at a level that does not significantly impair the Consumer's access to complaint handling.
• The Consumer has not submitted the application to the Conciliation Body Concordia et Ius srl within a pre-established time limit, which must not be less than one year from the date on which the Consumer submitted the complaint to the Professional.
• Dealing with this type of dispute would risk significantly harming the effective functioning of the Conciliation body Concordia et Ius srl

The relative assessment of whether or not to reject the initiation of the procedure is left exclusively to the prudent assessment of the designated Mediator, following the effective initiation of the Mediation and the consequent adhesion of the Invited Party to the relative request. If, in accordance with its own procedural rules, the designated Mediator deems it necessary to reject a dispute that has been assigned to him, he may provide both Parties that have joined the Mediation with a motivated communication of the reasons for not taking the dispute into consideration, within twenty days of the adhesion of the Invited Party. After this period, without any communication from the Mediator, the Mediation will continue normally.

Operating mode

1. The ADR procedure may be carried out, at the request of the Parties:

Through actual meetings of the Mediator with the Parties at a location of the Conciliation Body Concordia et Ius srl

Through remote communication tools, in compliance with the rules on the processing of personal data and confidentiality

Conciliation takes place in a simplified form, through a non-simultaneous exchange of communications between the Parties and the Conciliator.

2. The language of the procedure shall be Italian or, upon joint request of both Parties, English.

3. In the event that a procedure based on physical meetings between the Mediator and the Parties is requested, the meetings will be held at the headquarters of the Conciliation Body Concordia et Ius srl closest to the Consumer's residence, or at another location jointly chosen by the Parties.

4. The ADR procedure will begin within 30 days of the adhesion of the defendant Party, unless otherwise agreed between the Parties or justified organizational needs of the Service.

5. The Parties participate in the procedure personally or, for justified reasons, through their own representative equipped with all negotiating powers.

6. The Parties have the right – but not the obligation – to be assisted by Lawyers, representatives of consumer or trade associations or other trusted persons.

7. In any case, it is necessary for each Party to communicate to the Secretariat, with sufficient notice, who will participate in the ADR procedure or in the Parties thereof, as well as, if assisted by Lawyers, the personal details of the Lawyers assisting them.

8. The procedure is fast and will last a maximum of 90 days from the receipt of the complete application file; this term, if necessary, in the case of particularly complex disputes, may be extended, only once, by a further 90 days; the Parties must be informed of this extension and of the new deadline for the conclusion of the procedure (art. 141-quater, paragraph 3, letter e).

9. The Mediator conducts the meeting without procedural formalities and may hear the Parties jointly and separately.

10. In special cases, upon request of the Parties, the Secretariat may identify a Technical Consultant, following the indications provided by the Mediator, provided that all the Parties request it and undertake to equally support the related costs.

11. The Conciliation Body Concordia et Ius srl has expert Mediators in Consumer matters in charge of resolving disputes who possess adequate and specific training requirements, in accordance with the provisions of the individual competent authorities (art. 141-bis, paragraph 4, letter a), and respects the obligations of transparency, impartiality and fairness towards the parties to the proceedings and consumers in general, informing the Parties, through annual reports, about the methods of the procedure, the types of disputes, the rules governing the presentation of complaints, the criteria guiding the adoption of decisions, etc. (art. 141 bis).

12. The quality of the procedure is guaranteed by compliance with the ADR legislation on Consumer matters contained in the Directive and by the monitoring activity on the activity of the registered Bodies carried out by the competent Authority: in particular, the registration of the Body in the list managed by the competent Authority provides the registered ADR bodies with a quality certification, so as to give them visibility at European level through inclusion on the ODR platform.

13. The use of an ADR procedure does not affect the possibility for the Consumer and the Professional to appeal to the Judicial Authority (art. 141, paragraph 10). Regardless of the outcome of the ADR procedure, the Consumer retains the fundamental right to appeal to the competent Judicial Authority (this is a fundamental right established by the European Convention on Human Rights).