Assembleia da República (Assembly of the Republic)
Law
(This is not an official translation of the law)
Introduces the 5th amendment to Law No 23/96, of 26 July, the 3rd amendment to Law No 24/96, of 31 July and the 7th amendment to Law No 5/2004, of 10 February, in order to reinforce the effectiveness of consumer protection.
Under point c) of article 161 of the Constitution, the Assembleia da República (the Assembly of the Republic) hereby decrees as follows:
Article 1
Purpose
This law amends Laws No 23/96, of 26 July, 24/96, of 31 July and 5/2004, of 10 February, in order to reinforce the effectiveness of user and consumer protection, and to promote timely compliance with contracts concluded with consumers in the scope of electronic communications, thereby avoiding debt accumulation.
Article 2
Amendment to Law No 23/96, of 26 July
Articles 5 and 15 of Law No 23/96, of 26 July, as amended and republished by Law No 12/2008, of 26 February, and amended by Laws No 24/2008, of 2 June, 6/2011, of 10 March, and 44/2011, of 22 June, are hereby amended to read as follows:
«Article 5
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2 - In the event of late payment by the user that may justify the service suspension, such suspension shall only take place after the user is made aware, in writing, of the suspension, at least 20 days ahead of the date on which it is to occur.
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5 - The regime provided for in article 52-A of Law No 5/2004, of 10 February, as amended by Decree-Law No 176/2007, of 8 May, by Law No 35/2008, of 28 July, by Decree-Laws No 123/2009, of 21 May, and 258/2009, of 25 September, and by Law No 46/2011, of 24 June, and as amended and republished by Law No 51/2011, of 13 September, shall apply to the suspension of electronic communications services provided to consumers.
Article 15
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2 - In the event of a dispute resulting from the provision of an essential public service, where parties opt for extrajudicial dispute settlement mechanisms, time-limits provided for in paragraphs 1 and 4 of article 10 shall be suspended in their course.»
Article 3
Amendment to Law No 24/96, of 31 July
Article 8 of Law No 24/96, of 31 July, as amended by Law No 85/98, of 16 December, and by Decree-Law No 67/2003, of 8 April, is hereby amended to read as follows:
«Article 8
[...]
1 - The supplier of goods or service provider, both in the negotiation stage and in the contract conclusion stage, shall provide clear, objective and appropriate information to the consumer, namely on the characteristics, composition and price of the good or service, as well as on the term of the contract, guarantees, time of delivery and support after the contract is concluded, and on consequences of non-payment of the good or service.
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7 - The infringement of the duty to provide information on the consequences of non-payment of the good or service shall make the supplier of goods or the service provider liable for the payment of proceedings costs due for the recovery of the sum owed.»
Article 4
Amendment to Law No 5/2004, of 10 February
Articles 39, 52, 94 and 113 of Law No 5/2004, of 10 February, as amended by Decree-Law No 176/2007, of 8 May, by Law No 35/2008, of 28 July, by Decree-Laws No 123/2009, of 21 May, and 258/2009, of 25 September, and by Law No 46/2011, of 24 June, and as amended and republished by Law No 51/2011, of 13 September, are hereby amended to read as follows:
«Article 39
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a) To be informed in writing of the suspension of the service provision and of the termination of the contract in case of failure to pay invoices, as provided for in articles 52 and 52-A;
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i) To be provided with information, as provided for in articles 52 and 52-A, on the suspension and termination of the service, in situations other than those covered by point a);
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Article 52
Suspension and termination of the service provided to non-consumer subscribers
1 - Providers of public communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services shall only suspend services provided to subscribers who are not consumers after an appropriate advance notice is given to the subscriber, save in unforeseeable circumstances or force majeure.
2 - In case of unpaid bills, the suspension shall only take place after a written notice is sent to the subscriber, at least 20 days in advance, to justify why the service is to be suspended and to inform the subscriber of the means available to avoid it.
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Article 94
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e) Measures that apply to situations of unpaid telephone bills, pursuant to article 52 and 52-A;
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Article 113
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z) Violation of provisions on the suspension or termination of services as provided for in articles 52 and 52-A, including the non-suspension of the service in case of unpaid bills where such suspension is supposed to occur, the issue of bills further to the moment in which the service is to be suspended and the failure to restore the service, as provided for therein;
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Article 5
Addition to Law No 5/2004, of 10 February
Article 52-A is hereby added to Law No 5/2004, of 10 February, as amended by Decree-Law No 176/2007, of 8 May, by Law No 35/2008, of 28 July, by Decree-Laws No 123/2009, of 21 May, and 258/2009, of 25 September, and by Law No 46/2011, of 24 June, and as amended and republished by Law No 51/2011, of 13 September, to read as follows:
«Article 52-A
Suspension and termination of the service provided to consumer subscribers
1 - Where the provision of services to consumer subscribers is concerned, and in case of non-payment of amounts indicated on the bill, providers of public communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services shall issue an advance notice to the consumer, allowing an extension by 30 days for payment, and failure to do so may lead to the service being suspended and, possibly, to the contract being terminated, pursuant to paragraphs 3 and 7, respectively.
2 - The advance notice referred to in the preceding paragraph shall be sent in writing to the consumer within 10 days from the due date, specifically indicating the consequence resulting from the failure to settle the amount, namely the service suspension and automatic contract termination, and informing the subscriber of the means available to avoid them.
3 - Providers of public communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services are required to suspend the service for 30 days, within 10 days from expiry of the extension period provided for in paragraph 1, where the consumer, during that period, fails to make the payment or to conclude with the company a written payment arrangement for settling amounts due.
4 - The service shall not be suspended where a written complaint is lodged before the company against the amount indicated in the bill, on the grounds of its inexistence or unenforceability, up to the date on which the suspension is to start.
5 - Provisions in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the preceding paragraph shall apply to the suspension provided for in this article.
6 - The consumer may end the suspension by paying amounts due or concluding a written payment arrangement with the provider of public communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services, in which case the provider must restore the service provision immediately, or where this is not technically feasible, within five days from the date of payment or of conclusion of the payment arrangement, as appropriate.
7 - On conclusion of the 30-day period of suspension, where the customer has failed to pay all due amounts or to conclude a written payment arrangement, the contract shall be deemed to have terminated automatically.
8 -The termination provided for in the preceding paragraph shall be without prejudice to the charge of an indemnity or compensation for contract termination in the course of the loyalty period, pursuant to and with the limits set out in Decree-Law No 56/2010, of 1 June.
9 - Failure to pay any of the instalments agreed in the payment arrangement shall result in the termination of the contract, by means of a written advance notice to the consumer within the time limit provided for in paragraph 5 of article 52, and the preceding paragraph shall be applicable.
10 - Failure by the provider of public communications networks or publicly available electronic communications services to comply with provisions in this article, namely continuing to provide the service in violation of paragraph 3 or issuing bills further to the moment as from which the service provision is to be suspended, makes the consumer not liable for the payment of considerations due of the service provision nor of proceedings costs due for the recovery of the sum owed.
11 - The preceding paragraph shall not apply to bills issued after the suspension of the service provision that concern services effectively provided prior to the suspension or to considerations provided for in the law in case of early contract termination.
12 - Paragraph 1 of article 52 shall apply to the suspension of the service for reasons other than the non-payment of bills.»
Article 6
Effect
This law applies to all contracts, regardless of their time of conclusion, and shall take effects as from the billing period immediately following its entry into force.
Article 7
Entry into force
This law shall enter into force 90 days after its publication.
Approved on 7 December 2012.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic, Maria da Assunção A.Esteves.
Promulgated on 17 January 2013.
Let it be published.
The President of the Republic, Aníbal Cavaco Silva.
Countersigned on 21 January, 2013.
The Prime Minister, Pedro Passos Coelho.
