The Minister of Justice of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Katy Hoffmeister (CDU), advocates clearer and simpler terminations of contracts concluded online. The department announced on Monday in Schwerin that she wanted to bring a corresponding proposal for a resolution to the video justice ministers’ conference of the federal states at the end of November. Entrepreneurs should be obliged to make the termination of the contract as simple as the conclusion of the contract, said the minister.

The declaration of termination should be EU-wide become easier “I propose a button that is just as easy to find as the one when concluding a contract. This also relieves consumers of the risk that the declaration of termination may not reach the entrepreneur” , explained Hoffmeister. In this way consumer protection could be strengthened. The federal government should examine the extent to which there is legal leeway for this, and it should also campaign for a corresponding regulation at EU level.

Online business has become increasingly important, especially in the corona pandemic . On the other hand, terminating closed contracts online is comparatively problematic, for example with landline or internet connections. “There is an urgent need to make a declaration of intent to terminate the contract easier and more legally secure for the consumer than before,” the minister continued.

Cancel by button, confirm by e-mail The idea is not entirely new: Last year, consumer advocates and politicians called for termination of an online contract to be just as easy must be like the conclusion. Cancellation should therefore be able to proceed similarly to the button rule for a purchase (“order now with obligation to pay”), and this cancel button should be easy to find. Another idea from the Greens was that consumer dismissals must always be confirmed by the company by email. This is to avoid misunderstandings and annoyance about missed deadlines.

(tiw)