With the increasing internet penetration, consumers tend to shop online for greater convenience compared with conventional transactions. In ASEAN, rapid growth in the region's digital economy has also intensified challenges in safeguarding consumer data. This paper analyses ASEAN consumer data protection in e-commerce with a focus on existing regulations including ASEAN regional initiatives and domestic laws in six ASEAN member states: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The findings show that the non-binding nature of current ASEAN frameworks has led to significant divergences in implementation and enforcement of consumer data protection laws among ASEAN member states, as evidenced by divergent regulation of consent requirements and cross-border data transfer standards. Furthermore, some critical regulatory gaps remain unresolved. These include profiling and automated decision-making and third-party sharing and processor accountability. As e-commerce continues to grow, addressing these regional inconsistencies and regulatory gaps will be essential to safeguarding consumer privacy and fostering a secure, trustworthy digital economy in ASEAN.
Vehicle-efficiency labels are often defended as remedies for information asymmetry, yet label quality is still assessed too narrowly by whether a certified value is technically accurate. This article argues that mandatory consumer-information regimes also require interpretive accuracy: ordinary consumers should be able to translate official metrics into decision-relevant meaning without excessive translation burden. Building on advertising regulation’s consumer-takeaway logic, including Korean law’s concern with the overall impression received by ordinary consumers, the article defines translation burden as the cognitive, numerical, and contextual work needed to convert a truthful metric into operating-cost and comparative-performance judgements. The framework is applied to Korea’s state-authored vehicle-efficiency regime, where legacy km/L liquid-fuel labels now coexist with multi-powertrain disclosure and portal-based cost estimates. Korean evidence from 2015 on km/L-induced misperception provides diagnostic anchors for identifying where the current label architecture creates foreseeable translation burdens. The article shows how dual-unit disclosure, label-centred cost framing, and supplementary cost-interpretation bands could reduce foreseeable translation burdens. The proposed architecture has practical policy value because it identifies where legally accurate grades compress cost-relevant differences and translates that diagnosis into an administratively usable, lower-translation-burden disclosure design.
The purpose of this study is to examine awareness about and preferences for avoiding PFAS in different consumer products, exemplified by frying pans, outdoor leisure pants and sunscreen. Survey data is collected via a web panel to a representative sample of 2010 individuals living in Sweden. Individual differences in awareness are measured through a short quiz that were answered before the survey questions were introduced, in which respondents were asked to indicate which products that they believe may contain PFAS (in a list of ten different consumer products that all may contain PFAS). Binary logit and mixed logit models are applied to analyse whether respondents reporting that they use these products are willing to pay a higher price for PFAS-free versions. The results indicate that the choice for a PFAS-free product is affected by prior awareness in the case of frying pans and sunscreen. It is further evident that the convenient function of wind- and water resistance is valued highly for outdoor pants. Nevertheless, the relatively high WTPs for avoiding PFAS in all studied consumer products signal to companies whose products contain PFAS to search for alternative and less harmful substances. In other words, our results indicate that it can be profitable to stop using PFAS in manufacturing and clearly signal this to consumers. PFAS awareness correlates with higher WTP for PFAS-free sunscreen and frying pans. WTP for PFAS-free pants is high, but functionality matters more than PFAS avoidance. PFAS avoidance matters more for direct-contact products (sunscreen and frying pans).
The “right to choose repair” in European consumer law is central to sustainable consumption and consumer protection, yet its effectiveness depends on equitable access and enforcement across all consumer groups. While (consumer) law assumes that gender-neutral legal frameworks ensure equal protection, this premise remains empirically untested in the context of repair rights. This paper presents the first empirical study of gender’s role in enforcing the right to choose repair. Based on representative survey data from 3,141 consumers in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, gender-based differences in adherence to the right to choose repair and factors shaping willingness to enforce it are analysed. Results show that women face distinct barriers, including acting less consistently with legal rights and greater sensitivity to procedural obstacles, financial costs, and conflict. The extent and significance of these gender-based barriers vary between national contexts, pointing to targeted policy responses that address gendered patterns in consumer law enforcement.
Privacy regulation in digital markets increasingly relies on consent mechanisms implemented through user interfaces. While legal rules define the conditions under which consent must be obtained, interface design determines how easy it is to refuse data collection. This paper conceptualises consent interfaces as behavioural implementations of regulation and focuses on two measurable features of consent design: rejection friction and visual salience asymmetry. Using structured data on 8,000 domains from the Tranco ranking, analysed through the Consent Observatory tool, this paper examines consent interfaces across Poland, France, the Netherlands, and an additional global benchmark. The main comparison focuses on the three European country samples. The results show systematic differences in how refusal is structured. Direct rejection is much less common in Poland than in France and the Netherlands, and refusal in the Polish sample more often requires an additional step. Visual asymmetry is high in all three European country samples and strongest in Poland. The findings indicate that formally similar consent requirements can create systematically different choice conditions for users. From a regulatory perspective, this suggests that the implicit cost of refusing data collection depends not only on the formal existence of options, but also on how refusal is structured and presented, including through the intermediary systems that shape consent interfaces. Consent regulation does not create the same choice conditions across different websites and across countries. Cross-country differences are stronger for rejection friction than for visual asymmetry. CMP providers are an important channel through which consent design is standardized.
Mass harm events occur increasingly in the single market, with representative actions set to serve as a tool to address rational apathy of consumers in pursuing their claims. This article asks (i) how far artificial intelligence and automation tools can enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of EU consumer collective redress mechanisms and (ii) under what conditions such tools remain compatible with fundamental rights protections and the EU’s emerging AI acquis. Drawing on doctrinal comparison of Representative Actions Directive (RAD) transposition/implementation in the national laws of five Member States (the Netherlands, Czechia, Slovakia, France, and Germany) and on a mapping of AI use cases across the redress lifecycle, it is argued that algorithmic enrolment, evidence mining, and redress distribution can reduce (pre-)litigation costs significantly and simplify the relevant processes, thereby further helping combat the consumer “rational apathy.” Yet, the same technologies are classified as high risk under the AI Act, which could expose the courts, lawyers, and qualified entities to novel accountability considerations. Therefore, appropriate safeguards will have to be taken to reconcile “big data” in enforcement with “big justice.”
Recent amendments to the Estonian Law of Obligations Act require credit providers to offer consumers forbearance measures (out-of-court adjustments and refinancing in cases of financial difficulty). This study examines the legal framework and practical application of such measures in Estonia. We adopt a qualitative approach to analyze the perspectives of key stakeholders, including regulators, credit providers, judges, and debt counselors. Our findings indicate that the recent introduction of obligations to provide forbearance has led to inconsistent and often formalistic implementation by credit providers, with marked differences between banks and non-banks. Low financial literacy and avoidance behavior remain key barriers to early intervention, and popular measures, such as debt moratoria and refinancing, risk increasing consumers’ debt burden. We posit that the implementation of the new Consumer Credit Directive (2023/2225) into Estonian law will not significantly improve this situation. On the contrary, in some aspects, the new rules might be detrimental to consumers. We highlight the need for additional supervision and integrated policy measures.
This article examines whether Chile’s Voluntary Collective Procedures (VCPs) operate as an effective ADR-based mechanism for protecting collective and diffuse consumer interests. It combines doctrinal analysis of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) framework with a review of concluded VCPs and selected case studies. Introduced by Act No. 21.081, VCPs are administrative procedures conducted by the National Consumer Service (SERNAC). They are designed to achieve fast, complete, and transparent solutions in cases of alleged infringement of collective or diffuse consumer interests, through negotiated agreements with suppliers. These agreements do not imply recognition of liability by the supplier. Once approved by a court, they can have erga omnes effects, preventing subsequent collective actions based on the same facts and providing significant legal certainty. The analysis shows that VCPs have been an effective enforcement mechanism within the Chilean consumer protection system, particularly with regard to the prevention and correction of unfair standard terms, and the enforcement of consumer information duties.
Based on the need to understand how consumers process, evaluate, and respond to (MLM) multilevel marketers’ social media marketing efforts, the authors investigate how variations in earnings claim disclaimer specificity (none (control) vs. earnings-only vs. earnings-plus-cost), claim type (implicit vs. explicit), and source (distributor vs. company), in a social media post impact consumers’ earnings and cost expectations. Findings indicate that consumers exposed to a disclaimer that featured either earnings-only or earnings-plus-cost information reported significantly lower expected earnings and likelihood of earnings compared to consumers exposed to a post with no disclaimer. Increased disclaimer specificity was effective at reducing consumers’ expected earnings when exposed to explicit claims and was also effective at reducing consumers’ perceived odds of earning 6 K or more per year when exposed to a post from a company source. Policy and theoretical implications are discussed.
Personal insolvency regimes often require consumer debtors to complete a multi-year repayment plan before obtaining a discharge, yet empirical evidence on how plan duration relates to realised repayment remains scarce. This article provides exploratory evidence from the Belgian collective debt settlement procedure, a judicial procedure for structurally over-indebted consumers in which amicable repayment plans may last up to seven years. Drawing on a manually reconstructed file-level dataset from one Belgian labour-court division (Ghent) (n = 118; plans terminated 2020–2024), the study examines how plan duration is associated with plan performance, measured by the effective repayment percentage (recovery rate). The results reveal substantial heterogeneity, with clusters near both 0
In the European Union (EU), food safety enforcement operates within a hybrid regulatory framework involving public and private enforcement mechanisms. Effective participation in risk communication from entities of both sectors is essential for addressing the emergence of food safety incidents within the scope of this hybrid food law enforcement framework. Nonetheless, the effective enforcement of EU food law governing food supplements remains a persisting challenge. This study investigates the engagement levels of public and private stakeholders within the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) communication network, using the food supplement market as a case study. Drawing on the method of doctrinal legal analysis, the functional and normative structures of the EU legal framework governing food supplements is assessed. The analysis is supported by an empirical secondary data analysis to investigate stakeholder engagement with the RASFF. First, comparative trend analysis regarding the subject and frequency of notifications is carried out. Second, the impact of the adoption of the EU horizontal food law framework on RASFF engagement levels of food supplement market stakeholders is assessed. The results indicate an imbalance concerning risk communication in relation to food supplement quality issues. The majority of RASFF notifications can be attributed to public entity controls. Food businesses’ and consumers’ engagements were found to be potentially less affected by the introduction of horizontal food law provisions than safety authorities. Additional empirical research is required to investigate further factors influencing the underlying structures of participation by the private sector in food risk communication.
Consumer law in Australia has traditionally relied on economic rationales centred on market failure and rational actor theory. However, the rise of behavioural economics has exposed the limitations of these assumptions while raising questions about meaningful autonomy and consumer vulnerability that economic frameworks alone cannot resolve. Human rights principles can meaningfully address these normative gaps by grounding consumer protection in dignity, autonomy, and material security. This article argues for integrating a rights-based approach into Australian consumer law and policy, drawing on Deena Hurwitz’s framework of human rights lawyering to transform relationships between consumers and the marketplace. The article examines how human rights intersect with consumer protection across three dimensions, with particular attention to the right to an adequate standard of living and the right to privacy. First, it explores how substantive protections can be enhanced by incorporating human rights principles into the regulation of key types of consumer transactions, such as essential services and housing. Second, it develops a rights-based approach to consumer remediation, showing how human rights principles inform the interpretation of harm, exercise of regulatory discretion, and design of remedies within Australia’s existing enforcement architecture, particularly for consumers experiencing structural disadvantage. Third, it advocates for transforming legal service delivery and policy development to prioritize dignity, participation, and empowerment. The analysis reveals an existing but underutilized relationship between human rights and Australian consumer law, with substantial scope for embedding rights considerations more fully within the legal framework. This approach not only strengthens consumer protection but also aligns with Australia’s international obligations, helping to ensure consumers experiencing vulnerability and marginalization have their rights respected, protected, and fulfilled.
Consumers often struggle to recognize and resist complex scams, leaving them vulnerable to costly fraud. This research introduces incubation—a pause in active information processing—as a promising strategy for improving scam detection. Across three studies, this work demonstrates that incubation reduces consumers’ susceptibility to fraudulent offers. The effect is explained by materialism and varies by relationship status and self-esteem. By extending incubation theory into the domain of consumer fraud, this work sheds light on the psychological factors underlying scam vulnerability and suggests that policy-relevant interventions such as disclosure timing requirements or default delays in financial transactions, may help reduce consumer fraud victimization.
This study examines how public acceptance of an increase in water rate can be enhanced to support financially sustainable water services. Using survey data from 1665 individuals in Japan, we analyse how information provision and social capital affect willingness to pay (WTP) by focusing on use and non-use values. The results show that non-use values play a central role in shaping WTP. In particular, values related to financial sustainability, disaster preparedness, and reducing burdens on future generations significantly increase WTP, whereas altruistic concerns for low-income households do not. We also find that information provision alone does not increase WTP. Instead, prior knowledge of water services is associated with higher WTP, suggesting that information is effective only when it is already internalised. Moreover, certain types of information can reduce WTP, such as messages emphasising individual losses, decrease WTP among respondents with prior knowledge. Finally, social capital significantly influences WTP. Trust, reciprocity, and interactions with neighbours increase WTP, while participation in community activities negatively affects WTP. These findings highlight the importance of social and informational factors in designing policies to achieve socially acceptable water pricing.
The European Union has increasingly relied on consumer law to combat greenwashing, most notably through the Empowering Consumers Directive (Directive 2024/825) which amends the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD). The reforms tighten substantiation by requiring verifiable claims, restricting generic environmental assertions to cases demonstrating recognized excellent performance or specific justification, and limiting claims of carbon neutrality based on greenhouse gas offsetting. However, the 2025 withdrawal of the proposed Green Claims Directive has left the UCPD as the EU’s primary instrument against greenwashing. This article argues that, while these reforms can mitigate greenwashing practices, they cannot systematically resolve the accountability gap. This gap manifests at three interconnected levels: a normative gap stemming from the UCPD’s reliance on open norms, an enforcement gap arising from fragmented national implementation, and a consumer cognition gap due to the limitations of the average-consumer benchmark in assessing technical and scientific environmental claims. The article proposes institutional reforms, including the establishment of a centralized oversight mechanism, to complement the Empowering Consumers Directive.
Digital credit intermediaries have expanded access to consumer finance for new borrowers. These intermediaries are a major consumer policy concern as their remuneration models and, often, unregulated activity may cause consumer harm. Drawing on logistic and Poisson regression analyses of a unique commercial dataset of 1.2m UK subprime applicants generated by online lead generators, this is the first paper to shed light on the characteristics and behaviour of applicants on a key digital credit intermediary in UK subprime consumer credit markets. The analysis reveals that applicants are young, low-income, employed consumers in rented accommodation without children. The applicants rely on high-cost consumer credit to sustain and smooth consumption. Most consumers engage in repeat applications and have outstanding consumer debt at the application stage. Repeat applications increase with age until applicants reach retirement age. These patterns point to significant financial vulnerability, as applicants either lack access to lower-cost credit or continue to choose high-cost options despite alternatives. The findings raise concerns about the social value of credit demand originating from online lead generators. The paper makes recommendations for consumer policy and regulation to improve monitoring and outcomes for applicants on digital credit intermediary platforms. • First study of high-cost consumer credit applications from key digital credit intermediary • Online lead generator users are young, low-income renters in employment • High levels of dependence on high-cost credit to sustain and smooth consumption
Promoting healthy food consumption is an increasingly urgent public policy priority, given the rising prevalence of diet-related health issues such as obesity and chronic diseases. Prior research on healthy food has mainly focused on single packaging visual elements (e.g., color, material, or label style), while paying less attention to the interactive effects among multiple elements, namely visual density, which can influence consumers’ healthy food purchase intentions and, in turn, their dietary choices. This study investigates how visual density affects consumers' purchase intentions for healthy foods. Across three experiments and two supplementary experiments, results consistently demonstrate that high visual density increases purchase intentions compared to low visual density. This effect is mediated by perceived product efficacy. Additionally, nutrition labeling salience moderates this relationship: when nutrition labeling is prominent, the effect of visual density on purchase intentions diminishes. These findings suggest that packaging design regulations, alongside nutrition labeling policies, can jointly influence consumer behavior toward healthier choices. Implications for policy interventions aiming to improve public health outcomes through packaging design strategies are discussed.
This study examines how price-matching guarantees (PMGs) influence consumer behaviour in online retail. Using a Difference-in-Differences design (DiD), the paper tracks how product ratings react to within-product price changes during PMG periods. PMGs alone have no effect, but price increases under an active PMG reduce ratings, with impacts intensifying over time and concentrating on cheaper, less visible items. To probe mechanisms, the paper links review texts to the product–platform panel and builds transparent dictionaries for price/value language and sentiment. When prices rise under PMG, references to price/value spike, while placebo topics (quality, service, delivery) remain flat; sentiment shifts little. Event-study tests show flat pre-trends, supporting identification. Overall, PMGs act as market signals whose disciplinary bite emerges when prices move, especially where buyers are highly price sensitive or visibility is low. Antitrust and policy implications include safeguarding pricing transparency and consumer protection while balancing informational benefits against risks of anti-competitive conduct and consumer harm.
This paper reviews the history and ongoing debate surrounding neuroeconomics, outlines the main brain imaging techniques, and provides an overview of applications in neurofinance and consumer neuroscience and how these translate into policy relevance. The goal is to contribute to an understanding of the discipline and to an assessment of its potential benefits in providing policy guidance, especially for customer protection authorities. The review highlights that the debate between proponents and sceptics of the use of neuroscience tools in economics is still ongoing and often heated. However, even those who are critics tend to recognize that neuroeconomics can provide a contribution to traditional economics, in particular in the applied domain. Regulators and supervisors can enhance the effectiveness of their intervention by incorporating neuroeconomics' insights into the design, implementation and monitoring of consumer protection policies such as in the regulatory process and financial education initiatives. Moreover, neuroeconomics experiments can be used to assess consumer protection practices prior to their formal legal mandate. The review also shows that that in many cases these studies do not explicitly address all the policy implications of their findings even when those findings have clear relevance for consumer and investor protection, leaving valuable opportunity for increased collaboration between academic researchers and institutions in order to fully realize the potential of this emerging discipline.
