REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA
LAW
ON
CONSUMER PROTECTION
The Law establishes and guarantees the rights of the
population as the consumers of goods and services, and protects
their economic and social interests. The Law shall regulate the
relations between consumers and sellers or service suppliers that
have been registered in the established manner if the relations
are not regulated by other laws currently in effect. The Law
shall not regulate services related to health care.
CHAPTER I
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1. Concepts of the Law
The concepts used in the Law shall mean:
Consumer - a person who buys goods and uses services for
personal or household use;
Manufacturer - legal or natural person who has registered
his/her business in accordance with the procedure established by
law and produces goods for sale;
Seller - legal or natural person who has registered his/her
business in accordance with the procedure established by law and
sells goods to the consumer;
Service supplier - legal or natural person who has
registered his/her business in accordance with the procedure
established by law and carries out works for the consumer under
contract;
Goods' (services') warranty period - the period established
in normative documents of standardisation or contracts, within
which the consumer shall be entitled to a free repair of the
goods (services) or to the replacement thereof with goods
(services) of proper quality or to the refund of money paid for
the goods (services), should it transpire that the purchased
goods (services) fall short of the guaranteed quality, provided
that the violations of the regulations for the use of the goods
(services) has not been proved. Warranty period shall commence
from the day of purchase of goods (service supply);
Guarantee period of storage (sale) of goods - the period
provided for in the normative documents of standardisation or in
contracts which commences from the date of production and within
which the goods may be sold if kept in proper conditions
prescribed by the normative documents or contracts;
Service life - a period of time from the beginning of
service and until the product becomes unfit for use;
Normative document:
1) obligatory normative document which establishes the norms
of the safety of goods and obligatory quality standards to be
complied with by the manufacturer, service supplier and seller;
2) declared normative document which is referred to by the
manufacturer, service supplier or seller, undertaking thereby to
comply with all the requirements set forth in the document.
Article 2. Consumer Rights
In the Republic of Lithuania consumers shall have the
following rights:
1) to freely buy goods and use services;
2) to acquire proper quality and safe goods and services;
3) to request restoration of infringed rights and
compensation of losses;
4) to obtain information on goods and services and on the
procedure for implementing or restoring his/her consumer rights;
5) to freely form consumer organisations; and
6) to receive help from the institutions of state power and
government, and consumer organisations in restoring their
infringed rights.
CHAPTER 2
IMPLEMENTING CONSUMER RIGHTS
Article 3. Sale of Goods and Services
The right of consumers to buy goods and services at their
own discretion may not be restricted otherwise except by law.
The sale of goods, performance of services and payment for
such may not have any additional conditions attached to them,
unless the conditions were provided for in the contract.
The method of payment for the goods sold and services
performed shall be established by agreement between the seller
(service supplier) and consumer. For the goods (services) paid
for the seller (service supplier) must issue a receipt in
accordance with the procedure established by the Government of
the Republic of Lithuania.
Goods (services) must be delivered (performed) to the
consumer at the agreed time. In case of delay the seller (service
supplier) must pay interest established by law for each day of
delay which shall be calculated on the basis of the price of
goods (services) unless the contract of purchase-sale
(performance of service) provides otherwise.
If an item or material presented by the consumer is lost or
damaged through the fault of a service supplier, they may be
replaced, with the consumer's consent, by an item or material of
equal value or, if the consumer refuses or there are no
possibilities of replacement, the service supplier must
compensate for the value of the item or material in accordance
with the current prices and compensate for the incurred losses
taking into account the price index.
The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall establish
rules for retail trade, public catering and rendering of
services. Special rules may be established for individual types
of goods (services).
Article 4. Quality of Goods and Services
The quality of goods and rendered services must not be worse
than the quality provided for in normative documents of
standardisation and contracts.
The seller (service supplier) shall be responsible for the
quality of goods sold (services rendered).
Goods (services) the use whereof may have a negative effect
on human life and health shall be sold (rendered) only provided
that the safety of the goods (services) is certified by documents
issued by appropriate agencies. The list of such goods and
services shall be approved by the Government of the Republic of
Lithuania or an agency authorised by it.
If non-food goods which are sold to the consumer do not
correspond to the documents regulating their quality or are not
in compliance with the conditions set forth in the contract
(unless it is proved that the defects appeared through the
consumer's fault), the consumer shall have the right to request
within the warranty period (in the event that the period is not
established - within 6 months after purchase) that the seller, at
the consumer's choice:
1) replace goods of unsatisfactory quality;
2) eliminate the defects of goods free of charge;
3) reduce the price of goods; or
4) terminate the contract of purchase-sale and compensate
for the losses taking into account the consumer price index.
The procedure for implementing the rights specified in Par.
4 hereof shall be established by the regulations approved by the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
If the consumer purchases a food product that is not of
merchantable quality he shall have the right to either have it
replaced by a good quality product of the kind or to return it to
the seller and receive back the money paid for the product . The
above right may be exercised prior to the expiry of the guarantee
period for storage (sale) of the product.
Upon the expiry of the guarantee period for storage (sale)
of a product, it may be sold only after the guarantee period of
storage (sale) of goods is extended in accordance with the
established procedure and after the seller notifies the customer
thereof. Sale of perishable products included in the list of
perishable food products determined by the Ministry of Health the
guarantee period of storage (sale) whereof has expired shall be
prohibited in the Republic of Lithuania.
The customer shall be compensated by the seller if during
the service life of a product as established by normative
documents of standardisation he suffers damages by reason of the
product's faulty quality. The seller who compensates for the
damage caused to the consumer shall have recourse against the
manufacturer through whose fault the damage is caused for the
compensation of the incurred losses.
The manufacturer must guarantee adequate and reliable
servicing and repairs of the product within the established
service period.
Article 5. Provision of Consumer Information
The consumer shall be entitled to get comprehensive and true
information in the state language as to the acquisition of goods
and services terms, their quality, directions for use, warranties
and exchange period, the procedure for the termination of the
purchase of goods (services) contract, as well as other relevant
information that has significance for the consumer.
The provision of such information to the consumer and its
truthfulness shall be the responsibility of the seller (service
supplier). If the consumer was not provided with relevant
information or if it was fraudulent and by reason thereof the
goods or services were not fit for their intended use, he shall
be entitled to terminate the contract and to request the
reimbursement for losses.
At retail trade and service supply outlets names of goods
(services) and their prices must be publicly displayed.
If the consumers are misled by false advertising by reason
of which they suffer losses, the advertiser must reimburse for
such losses. Goods must contain information necessary for its
consumption (use), provided for in the normative documents of
standardisation
Mandatory goods' marking requirements shall be established
by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania or an agency
authorised by it.
If the safety of goods, their transportation and storage
require special rules, an agency authorised by the Government or
the manufacturer of goods must prepare them and the seller of
goods or services must notify the buyers about them .
If after the goods are sold it turns out that it may cause
harm to the consumer, the seller or manufacturer must immediately
warn the consumers and supervisory institutions or agency and
take measures to eliminate said danger. If it is not possible to
eliminate said defects, the consumer shall have the right to
terminate the contract and to demand the indemnification for the
losses from the seller.
The production and selling of such goods must be immediately
discontinued in accordance with the procedure established by
normative acts.
CHAPTER 3
SAFEGUARDING CONSUMERS' RIGHTS
Article 6. Government Agencies Safeguarding Consumers'
Rights
A state institution authorised by the Government and
financed from the state budget which is subordinate to the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall monitor the
enforcement of this Law in the Republic of Lithuania.
The institution authorised by the Government shall protect
the rights of the consumers, related to the sale of goods and
services by :
1) monitoring the quality of goods and services;
2) controlling whether the sellers and manufacturers of
goods and services comply with the legislation and other
normative acts;
3) applying sanctions that are within their competence
against violators, or submitting appropriate proposals to the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania;
4) consulting the consumers on all issues relative to their
rights;
5) organising the development of the culture of consumption
and issuing specialised publications; 6) investigating the
petitions of consumers, in respect of the infringement of their
rights.
The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall approve
the Council established under the auspices of state institution
authorised by the Republic of Lithuania, the members of which are
representatives of interested institutions. The Council shall
function in compliance with the statutes approved by the
Government of the Republic of Lithuania.
State power and government institutions shall ensure that
international agreements concerning the supply of goods and
services are complied with in the territory of the Republic of
Lithuania and that international consumer protection provisions
are applied.
State power and government institutions shall provide
conditions for the functioning of public consumer organisations
and support their activities.
Article 7. The Protection of the Infringed Consumer
Rights
If a person ( a seller of goods or supplier of services) who
infringed on the consumers' rights, refuses to satisfy the
consumers claim to the restoration of the infringed right, the
consumer may appeal to the agency authorised by the Government
and in cases provided by laws, to municipal institutions.
Upon receipt of a consumers complaint, said agencies must
within a month investigate the complaint, and provided the
consumer's rights were infringed, to achieve that these rights
are restored. If a consumer disagrees with the findings of the
agency that investigated his complaint, he may directly appeal to
court or the Prosecutor's Office.
Article 8. The Rights of Public Consumer Organisations
Public Consumer Organisations shall have the right to:
1) protect consumers' rights , their economic and social
interests in state power and government institutions, in court
and public organisations;
2) obtain information from relevant state government
agencies, manufacturers, sellers, and the suppliers of services
in respect of the quality of products and goods sold or services
rendered, as well as other information necessary for the
protection of consumers rights and interests with the exception
of state and commercial secrets;
3) investigate public opinion about the range of goods and
their quality, the organising of the supply of goods and
services, etc;
4) investigate the quality of goods and services at their
testing centers and laboratories accredited in the established
manner, as well as present them to competent Lithuanian and
foreign organisations for examination and testing;
5) submit proposals and recommendations to state government
institutions, manufacturers, sellers and suppliers of services in
relation to the improvement of the quality of goods and services,
discontinuation of the production of goods (supply of services)
which are of a non-merchantable quality , prevention of the
production and sale of dangerous consumer goods;
6) on behalf of the consumer to lay claims to legal and
natural persons , who infringed consumer rights and legitimate
interests;
7) to appeal to state power and government institutions, if
said institutions adopted decisions contradicting this Law and
other legislation safeguarding consumer rights and interests.
Article 9. Liability of Persons for the Violation of
the Consumer Rights
The terms in the purchase and sale contracts and supply of
services contracts may not be in conflict with the laws of the
Republic of Lithuania. The rules of the supply of goods and
services that infringe upon consumer rights or exempt the
manufacturer, seller or supplier of services from the liability
or that limit it shall be prohibited.
Upon infringement of the consumer rights should any moral
harm be inflicted upon the consumer, the violator must compensate
for it. Upon the restoration of the infringed consumer rights,
other liability established by laws may apply to the offenders.
I promulgate this Law passed by the Seimas of the Republic
of Lithuania
ALGIRDAS BRAZAUSKAS
President of the Republic
Vilnius
10 November 1994
No. I-657