Reform of out-of-court disputes in question: the bill requires revision

The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Digital Transformation reviewed the government bill No. 15100 on out-of-court resolution of consumer disputes and effectively returned it for revision due to a number of technical and legal comments concerning open data, electronic identification, and terminological consistency with current legislation.

As reported by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper", the bill covers disputes between consumers and business entities regarding non-performance or improper performance of contractual obligations, sale of goods, digital content and digital services, warranty obligations, failure to provide mandatory information, unfair commercial practices, as well as discrimination based on nationality or place of residence.

The scope also includes disputes related to access to services and delivery, rights of passengers and tourists, change of service provider, and other consumer rights violations.

At the same time, the law will not apply to court proceedings, direct negotiations between parties, administrative services, disputes between entrepreneurs, as well as medical services and services in the field of higher and professional education.

Who will consider the disputes

It is planned to create special bodies for out-of-court resolution of consumer disputes. These may be legal entities, consumer public associations, or associations of legal entities that will undergo an appointment procedure and be included in the official list.

In the field of electronic communications, such functions will be performed by the National Commission for the State Regulation of Communications and Informatization (NCCIR), and in energy and utilities — by the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Public Utilities (NERC). For financial services, special rules will apply taking into account sectoral legislation. It is also proposed to create a Contact Point that will coordinate the system, interact with European consumer protection structures, and help determine the competent authority for dispute consideration, including cross-border cases.

The procedure will work as follows: before applying to the out-of-court dispute resolution body, the consumer must first submit a complaint directly to the business entity. Only after this can they initiate out-of-court consideration. Complaints can be submitted in paper or electronic form. Dispute consideration may take place remotely, including via videoconferences. The bodies will consider both domestic and cross-border disputes.

Additionally, consideration may occur if the consumer has not contacted the business entity, the dispute is already being considered or has been resolved by another body or court, the appeal is submitted later than one year after the initial complaint, or if the dispute is unfounded or shows signs of abuse of rights.

In its conclusion, the Ministry of Digital Transformation drew attention to inconsistencies of the bill with the Law of Ukraine "On Access to Public Information," particularly regarding open data. However, the Committee supported the approach that public information should not just be "posted" but specifically published in the form of open data on the Unified State Web Portal.

In this regard, a number of amendments to the bill text were proposed, including:

• replacing the term "posting" with "publishing" in key articles;
• clarifying reporting requirements for dispute resolution bodies;
• establishing mandatory publication of annual reports on websites and the open data portal;
• setting deadlines for report publication (specifically by March 1 and September 1 depending on the entity).

It is also proposed to detail the mechanism for summarizing reports by the contact point and their publication in open data format.

The second part of the comments concerns the use of electronic signatures in the procedure for dispute consideration via videoconference.

The Committee emphasized the need to align the provisions with the Law of Ukraine "On Electronic Identification and Electronic Trust Services," which replaced the previous regulation of electronic digital signatures.

It is noted that the legal and organizational foundations of electronic identification and provision of electronic trust services, the rights and obligations of entities in this field, as well as the procedure for state control, are defined by the Law of Ukraine "On Electronic Identification and Electronic Trust Services."

At the same time, according to the Final and Transitional Provisions of this Law, the Law of Ukraine "On Electronic Digital Signature" is recognized as invalid.

According to current legislation, a qualified electronic signature is a type of advanced electronic signature created using a special tool and based on a qualified electronic signature certificate.

It is also established that an advanced electronic signature based on a qualified certificate is formed using a certificate issued by a qualified provider of electronic trust services and does not involve storing the private key in the qualified electronic signature tool.

Furthermore, according to the law, state authorities, local self-government bodies, other legal entities of public law, and their officials use qualified electronic signatures and seals, as well as electronic signatures and seals based on qualified public key certificates.

In this regard, it is proposed to revise the second paragraph of part one of Article 15 of the draft Law as follows:

"In case of dispute consideration by the dispute resolution body via videoconference, the consumer submits a complaint and documents confirming the circumstances of the dispute (if available) with the imposition of a qualified electronic signature or an advanced electronic signature based on a qualified electronic signature certificate."

Despite technical comments, the committee members supported the concept of the bill, noting that it potentially creates infrastructure in Ukraine for fast and inexpensive resolution of consumer disputes both domestically and cross-border. At the same time, it was emphasized that in its current version the document requires revision due to inconsistencies of certain provisions with digital and information legislation.

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