BEUC - The Consumer Voice

What is the price of too lenient merger control for consumers? 🔹less innovation 🔹more profits for companies 🔹efficiencies not materialising Our new blog post takes stock of new Commission data looking at what this means 👉 blog.beuc.eu/eu-merger-co...

Smart glasses should not turn everyday public spaces into places of covert surveillance. In a letter to Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen, BEUC is calling on the EU to urgently examine the privacy risks of camera-equipped wearable devices. www.beuc.eu/letters/cove...

Good news! 👏 Danone, Coca-Cola and Nestlé have agreed to stop misleading consumers about the recyclability of their products, following BEUC's greenwashing complaint launched in November 2023, with the support of ClientEarth and ECOS. Check out our full press release: www.beuc.eu/press-releas...

Interested in the future of adtech and commercial surveillance? Join BEUC and the Norwegian Consumer Council on 2 November for a webinar exploring the Xandr fine, its implications for the digital advertising industry, and the ongoing EU Digital Omnibus.

As temperatures drop, some might be wondering what’s it like to live with a heat pump. Last year we asked consumers across Europe to find out. 🚨 Spoiler alert: most people are very happy with their heat pumps, reporting that their thermal comfort has increased. Find out more 👇 #HeatPumpDay

What happens when your shopping assistant starts shopping for you? AI agents can already compare offers and will soon complete purchases. Delegating a task to AI must not mean losing rights, transparency or control. The upcoming Digital Fairness Act must close gaps. 👇 www.beuc.eu/tools/toward...

Last week 🇫🇷 and 🇩🇪 made a deal that completely ignores consumers. They want to dilute 2035 car CO2 standards even further. In a cost of living crisis, consumers are finding ways to escape fossil fuel prices. They should be supported, rather than discouraged, in this process 👇

How can a closer EU-Canada relationship deliver for consumers? ▪️safer and more sustainable products, ▪️affordable and accessible services, ▪️easier travel and payments, ▪️and stronger protection when things go wrong. Our joint checklist with the Consumers Council of Canada ⤵️

The EU is negotiating rules to keep pesticides in our fields and on our plates for even longer than today. There are better solutions 👇 🔹give the EU Food safety authority more budget 🔹and more staff Consumers shouldn't have to worry about what's in their plates 👉 www.beuc.eu/tools/key-po...

EU leaders meet this week and energy prices are high on the agenda. With consumers picking up the bill for another fossil-fuelled energy crisis, governments must protect the most vulnerable. But the best protection against the next crisis is speeding up renewables, clean heating & home renovation👇

In times of crisis, our food systems break down. As a response, policymakers rush to find quick fixes. Emergency measures ease the crisis' worst effects but will not stop the system from breaking down again. How can the EU change that? Read our blog to find out 👇 blog.beuc.eu/addressing-f...

EV sales numbers are proof that regulation works 🚗🔌 Let's not backtrack now @arcapde.bsky.social said at a @transportenvironment.org event. Making EVs more accessible means we need to: ✅ Expand social leasing ✅ Electrify corporate fleets ✅ Make public charging easier & more transparent

🎉 Great news! Microsoft is fined €8,5 million by the Norwegian Data Protection Authority for sharing personal data to potentially thousands of companies! www.forbrukerradet.no/side/microso... 1/

Are new fossil fuel projects green? 🤔 The EU's Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation risks opening the door to greenwashing if investing in fossil fuel expansion is allowed in the 'Transition' category. Here's what that could look like for consumers 👇

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐫? 📲 Thanks to the DMA, Google and Apple now allow you to wirelessly transfer your data from Android to iOS and vice versa when you switch devices. 👏 Competition works best when people can choose freely, without losing access to their digital lives.

📈Food prices are increasing globally. In 🇪🇺 the current fossil fuel crisis is raising concerns about prices going up for consumers. Our new blog focuses on why emergency responses from governments are no longer enough. 📣Stop quick fixes, look at food systems 👉 blog.beuc.eu/addressing-f...

ETS2 is key to decarbonising buildings & transport + protecting consumers from future price shocks. ✍ We've joined a call on EU countries to implement ETS2 in 2028 with no further delay 👇 This will allow countries to start helping the most vulnerable to participate in the energy transition.

More renewables means more stable energy prices ⚡ But this pathway isn't guaranteed. A potential renewables target for 2040 is at risk. Dropping it would give consumers less protection from the next fossil-fuelled energy crisis. We're pleased to join the #KeepTheTarget campaign: keepthetarget.eu

How can we tackle dark patterns? We discussed this and much more at this week's joint Enforcement & Consumer Rights Expert Meeting in Berlin, kindly hosted by our German member @vznrw.bsky.social, shaping how we protect consumers in the months ahead. Thank you all for the rich exchange! 🚀

🎮Nine video game companies are under investigation for unfair practices flagged by BEUC, like hidden in-game currency costs & unfair terms. "No one should need a calculator to know what they're spending," says our DG Agustín Reyna. www.beuc.eu/game-over

Bringing energy bills down is a top priority for consumers. With energy prices rising and further hikes on the horizon, ensuring affordability is key. So what can be done? In this blog from earlier this year (which is still just as topical), @arcapde.bsky.social proposes some solutions 👇

📢 Happening this Wednesday: Are we underestimating the economic value of privacy? Join us tomorrow for the presentation of our new report: The economic costs of weakening privacy and data protection. ⏱️ Haven't registered yet? You can still do so until end of today on our website ⤵️