Services Standards: Defining the Core Consumer Elements ... - ANEC

Services Standards
Monitoring
and
inspection in
co-regulation
and selfregulation
Consumer
contract law
on services
Transport
7. Impact on standardisation of services
Financial
services
Network
services for
customers
(electricity,
gas,
telecommun
ication,
postal
services)
and the
manner in
which they
have been
handled 395
Monitoring
duties in the
best practice
propositions
397
Services
such as
contracts
with liberal
professions
and
craftsmen
Communicati
on of
results 396
The review of the existing EC rules on services clearly demonstrates that the
EC legislator starts from a piecemeal approach. The directives and regulations
are covering those issues which seemed to be of concern for the European
Commission. However, there is no concept behind to look more systematically
into the regulation of services. This is a first lesson to learn for standardisers.
The EC rules on services leave a number of loopholes which could easily be
filled through standardisation:
(1) rules on education and skills are not regarded as being part of service
regulation, they are to be found in separate pieces of EC law.
Equipment and premises appear to a limited extent only, although
service providers should be given guidance in how safe the equipment
should be;
(2) in the pre-contractual stage rules are missing on advice, on the
availability of standard terms, and on the form in which the contract is
concluded;
395 Article 19 para 4 Directive 2002/39/EC.
396 Article 22 (1) a), (3) and (4) of the Service Directive.
397 Supplier Switching Process, under “Ensure customer confidence and sound market
monitoring”, under no. 30: Customer protection, under “To ensure reliable and continuous
supply of good quality” and “To help the customer effectively redress the conflict with the
service provider”, no. 29 to 41.
125