The Parliamentary Committee on Economic Policy, Investment, and Industry has approved, at a second reading, amendments to the Consumer Protection Act. The bill, submitted by the Council of Ministers, aims to establish a minimum level of protection for the use of financial services.

The new regulations clearly define the provision of pre-contractual information and the right of withdrawal in distance contracts. Traders will now be required to provide a technical option for exercising the right of withdrawal via an online interface when the contract is concluded electronically.

A strict ban is being introduced on practices that manipulate consumer decisions when entering into financial services contracts online. At the same time, the scope of mandatory pre-contractual information is being expanded. It must now include a reminder of the existence of a statutory warranty, information on the presence or absence of a commercial durability warranty for goods and a reminder of it if one is provided, as well as information on the availability, expected costs, and ordering procedure for spare parts, options for repair and maintenance, information on the presence or absence of environmentally friendly delivery options, and free software updates for goods with digital elements, digital content, and digital services.

With the adopted amendments, Bulgaria is transposing EU Directive 2024/825. The goal is to protect against misleading claims regarding environmental sustainability, such as general claims about environmental characteristics without evidence, advertising benefits or future environmental performance without verifiable data, presenting legally required features as distinctive advantages of a product, and comparing the sustainability of products without providing information on the method and manner of comparison.