Consumer Rights Act comes into force

Shoppers have been given new rights when purchasing goods following the introduction of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 on 1 October.

The Act has been designed to reinforce shopper’s rights when it comes to obtaining refunds or replacements for substandard goods and services or unfair terms.

Under the Act, consumers now have 30 days to request a replacement or full refund for a faulty item, be it a physical or digital purchase, such as e-books, games, music or movies.

To assist consumers in a dispute, certified Alternative Dispute Resolution providers will now be available as a quicker and cheaper alternative to pursuing compensation through the courts.

However, for those who do opt to enter the courts, there is also the alternative of bringing a ‘class action’, making it far easier for groups of consumers to seek compensation from firms that have fixed prices.

Previously, groups of consumers or small and medium-sized businesses who wanted to take action against companies that fixed the price of goods or services had to either ‘opt in’ to the action or bring a claim in their own name, but the new rules allow them to ‘opt out’ meaning everyone affected is automatically a member of the ‘class’ which is suing.

Business Minister, Nick Boles said: "Whether it’s downloading music or buying a fridge freezer, the Consumer Rights Act makes it easier to understand your rights.

"These changes will also simplify the law for businesses so they can spend less time worrying about unclear and unwieldy regulations."

Figures from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) show consumers experienced more than 18 million problems with goods and services in the 12 months to the middle of last year, costing them around £4.15 billion.

These new measure are predicted to boost the economy by £4 billion over the next decade by streamlining eight pieces of complicated legislation into one concise law.

Resolution calls for law to catch up with cohabitation boom

Family law organisation, Resolution, has called for more action to be taken on improving the legal rights of cohabiting couples, following new research that shows a boom in the number of unmarried people living together.

Recently released data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that around one in eight adults in England and Wales are unmarried and living with a partner.

In response, Resolution chair, Jo Edwards said: “Cohabitation is the fastest growing type of relationship in the country, with the ONS finding that almost 12 per cent of the population are living with a partner without being married.

“Despite this, the law doesn’t give people in this type of relationship any meaningful legal protection if they separate or if one of them dies. In this, we lag far behind many other developed countries.”

She added that the research showed that the law had to keep up with our own changing society and that there was a real need to introduce legal recognition of cohabitees to “prevent continuing injustice.”

Resolution have said that they would like to see the creation of new laws to create legal rights for cohabiting couples and secure fair outcomes during separation or following the death of one partner.

Under their own proposals, cohabitants meeting eligibility criteria indicating a committed relationship would have a right to apply for certain financial orders if they separate. This right would be automatic unless the couple chooses to ‘opt out’.

Link: Resolution

Legal rights ‘meaningless’ following court fee hikes

The Law Society has called on the Government to halt any future increase to court fees after they claim previous hikes failed to deliver tangible improvements in the court service or protect access to justice.

Their comments come as the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) completes its consultation on lifting the current cap on court fees, which has been met with contempt by members of the legal profession.

Speaking last month, the Law Society’s president, Jonathan Smithers, said: “There has been no assessment of the impact of increases, just six months ago, of more than 600 per cent.

“Raising the fees further may render ordinary people’s legal rights meaningless because they simply would not be able to afford to enforce them.”

The Law Society repeated its concerns for higher fees for divorce claims. The current estimated cost of such proceedings, according to the MoJ’s own figures, is £270. However, the Government has announced proposals to increase the charge to £550.

The Society has also said that the increase in court fees would have a disproportionate effect on small and medium sized businesses, doubling some fees to £20,000.