So far this year, the Belgian economy ministry has already received more than 30,000 complaints from consumers. That is 13 per cent more than the previous year. Almost a third of all reports concern problems with online purchases and sales, especially fraudulent web shops. The legal guarantee is the topic that triggers most questions among consumers.
Through the ConsumerConnect website , the economy ministry informs the public at large about their rights as consumers and what actions they can take if something goes wrong with their purchases or sales. You can also use the website to report problems you as a consumer have experienced when buying or selling.
This year, 30,000 people have already reported problems, which is 13 per cent more than in the same period last year. Almost a third of these, around 8,000 reports, concerned problems with online purchases and sales. This figure is comparable to 2024.
The majority of these 8,000 reports - just over 5,000 - were about fraudulent web shops. These reports are mainly the result of consumers who received nothing or something of very poor quality when they ordered something (some 1,800 reports).
‘Every report we receive is reviewed by our economic inspectorate,’ says Lien Meurisse, spokesperson for the economy ministry. ‘Based on that report, it can then decide to launch an investigation into the company, after which measures may be imposed to ensure that there are no more victims.’
Most questions about the statutory warranty
The statutory guarantee is the topic that triggers most questions. This year, the Contact Centre has already received around 1,000 questions by telephone or e-mail, almost double the number received in 2024. The web page on statutory guarantees on ConsumerConnect is also very popular, with 3,000 visits since the website was launched.
‘We can see from the questions we receive that consumers are often unaware of their rights regarding the legal guarantee,’ says Meurisse. ‘And we want to change that, of course. We want to ensure that buyers know what the guarantee is, when they can invoke it and how best to do so.’
Campaign blitz
To promote the website the economy ministry is launching a campaign on radio, television and social media. ‘Although more and more consumers are finding their way to the ConsumerConnect website, many people are still not sufficiently aware of it,’ says Meurisse.
The campaign will run throughout December, not coincidentally during the end-of-year period. ‘Because that's when a lot of consumers are looking for gifts and promotions’.