Press releases

Today, the Spanish Ministry for Social Rights, Consumers and the 2030 Agenda has fined four airlines (Ryanair, Vueling, Easyjet and Volotea) for abusive practices including unfair pricing for hand luggage for a total amount of €150m. BEUC supports this decision, as consumers are frequently confused and angered by the different and opaque pricing approaches of airlines. It is one of the first times that a 2014 European Court of Justice ruling, stipulating hand luggage cannot be subject to additional charges as long it meets reasonable weight and size requirements, is being applied. However, it also shows consumer-friendly, EU standards on hand luggage are needed.

The European Commission has fined multinational food company Mondelēz €337.5 million for hindering cross-border trade in chocolate products like Milka and Toblerone, Oreo biscuits and Jacobs coffee throughout the EU’s Single Market. According to the Commission, for several years Mondelēz took measures to prevent traders from buying and selling Mondelēz products in other EU countries to maintain higher prices, harming consumers. These measures prevented suppliers from making full use of the Single Market.

Consumer groups from the BEUC network have today filed complaints with authorities against booming Chinese online marketplace Temu for failing to protect consumers and for using manipulative practices which are illegal under recent EU legislation.

Italian owners of Volkswagen cars fitted with defeat devices will finally get compensation. This is the outcome of a settlement agreed between BEUC’s Italian member Altroconsumo and Volkswagen, in the Italian Dieselgate case initiated in 2015. Volkswagen agreed to compensate 60,000 consumers for a total amount of €50 million.