Wine Law

LEGAL PROTECTION OF THE CONSUMER OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES 257 A crucial part of consumer rights concerns health, and so, Community policies include the promotion of health among their objectives, especially those protecting citizens against health threats. At this point, and regarding the adulteration of beverages, it is important to mention Directive 2001/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, of 3 December 2001, on the general product safety, which establishes a system for the safety of products in general, under which any product that has been marketed must comply with certain rules concerning the provision of information to consumers, measures to avoid security risks, security control of the product and traceability. The European Union has an information exchange system between the Member States and the Commission, called Rapid Exchange of Information System (RAPEX), which is effective when a product constitutes a serious threat that requires immediate immobilisation measures. In this information centre, the European Consumer Centres Network (ECC Net) should also be mentioned, which offers information and assists consumers in cross-border transactions. Similarly, with regard to information in distance sales contracts and contracts negotiated outside commercial establishments, Directive 2011/83/EU, on consumer rights, regulates consumer rights by establishing rules concerning the information that must be provided to them, the regulation of the right of withdrawal and the harmonisation of certain contractual provisions. Finally, two questions must be raised in the event that a consumer right has been infringed under European law: 1) the reaction of the legal system to demand that such an infringement cease immediately and 2) the purge of responsibilities and compensation for the damage caused. In the first case, Directive 2009/22/EC, on injunctions for the protection of consumers’ interests, on the one hand, harmonises current national and European Union laws, in order to defend the collective interests of consumers, and, on the other, provides for injunctions, which can be brought before the in each Member State’s competent courts in the event of an offence committed by a commercial operator from another State. In terms of liability for damage caused by defective products and the indication of prices, Directive 99/34/EEC establishes the principle of the producer’s strict liability in case of damage caused by a defective product 24 , which is governed by the damage system antilegal that there is no duty to support, action or omission, and causal relationship between both. 24 BAUZÁ MARTORELL, F. J. La presunción de culpa en el funcionamiento de los servicios públicos. Civitas Thomson Reuters. CIzur Menor, 2017, p. 195.