The refurbished market is on the rise, but still lacks transparency. This is the finding of investigators from the DGCCRF (General Directorate for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention) who conducted a study in 2020 and 2021 in the sector of refurbished tablets and smartphones.
This survey concerns 84 stores and online sales sites. In 62% of cases, more or less significant anomalies were observed. Thus, the investigation gave rise to 27 administrative injunctions and 26 warnings, which relate mainly to the lack of information and technical documentation. However, the DGCCRF does not indicate which brands have been sanctioned.
The first problem is to make a strict distinction between a used product and a reconditioned product. This is why a decree was recently published to fix the use of the terms “reconditioned” and “reconditioned product”.
The other problem is the lack of precision on the condition of the products, which is often limited to terms like “very good condition”, “premium”, “good condition” or “perfect condition”. Thus, it is difficult for the consumer to know the level of loss of use compared to a new product. The DGCCRF indicates that this lack of information on the characteristics is therefore not in accordance with Articles L. 111-1 and L. 221-5 (distance selling) of the Consumer Code.
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The investigators also pinpointed certain brands that wrongly use the notion of certification to designate internal control processes. Indeed, according to the law, certification must be carried out by an accredited third-party body.
Finally, the DGCCRF noted problems with the guarantee, which was often inaccurate or not mentioned. Remember that the legal warranty is two years for used products, as for new products.
The DGCCRF calls on consumers to be vigilant and encourages them to use the Signal Conso site in the event of a problem with a merchant.
Source : DGCCRF