My colleague, and the founder of this blog, Joasia Luzak recently wrote an insightful paper on the pros and cons of giving consumers a right to withdraw from distance contracts: To withdraw or not to withdraw? Evaluation of the mandatory right of withdrawal in consumer distance selling contracts taking into account its behavioural effects on consumers.
The abstract reads as follows:
'The right of withdrawal was introduced to European consumer law as an exception to the general contractual principle of pacta sunt servanda. It has recently been upheld in the Consumer Rights Directive as a mandatory right for consumers concluding distance selling contracts. Among various assessments of this measure a comprehensive evaluation thereof from the point of view of consumers’ interests is lacking. Such an assessment is conducted in this paper with consideration of the effect that the right of withdrawal is likely to have on consumers. The yardstick for the evaluation of the current rules, as well as for suggesting a new approach is the increased consumer welfare, which takes into account consumers’ happiness and their lack of regret for entering into transactions.'
