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Consumer's Telegramm European Edition
If you wish to be informed monthly about European consumer news, just subscribe our free newsletter.Consumer's Telegram June 2008
Insert of n. 42 - Editorial office: Centro Europeo Consumatori (European Consumer Centre, Bolzano - Italy)ON HOLIDAY BY CAR
Traffic Fines in Foreign Countries
Tourists from abroad frequently turn to the European Consumer Centre (ECC) for information after their return from Italy, because they have received- as an unpleasant souvenir so to say- an administrative order imposing a fine. Recently we get more and more reports form people who inadvertently entered a traffic restricted area (in Italian: "zona a traffico limitato" ZTL).The municipal authorities of many towns and cities, in particular of those world-famous for their art, which are favourite destinations of European tourists, created limited traffic zones with electronic gateways monitored by cameras. A lot of tourists do not know that by entering these zones they infringe the traffic regulations and that therefore they can be fined.
The normal procedure followed by the authorities is to stop the car and fine the driver on the spot. The driver can alternatively decide to pay the penalty immediately (losing his right to appeal against it), or pay a deposit and thus appeal against the fine to the prefect or the magistrate.
If this is not possible, the administrative order imposing the fine is sent to the home address of the driver.
In case of failure to pay, execution abroad is also possible, depending on the existing agreements between the concerned states, namely between the country in which the driver is domiciled and the country in which the offence occurred.
You can turn to the ECC in Bolzano for further information about this issue.
EURO 2008
Consumers and Football Mania
Many football fans are impatiently looking forward to the start of the European Championship of Soccer on the 7th of June 2008.The European Consumer Centre of Austria has created a special website containing useful information about the Austrian venues, the fan zones, how to get there and many other interesting issues.
Information like distances between the single destinations and about driving and the charging system of Austrian motorways might be especially useful for those foreign fans that are not so familiar with Austria.
Moreover the Austrian colleagues are providing interesting information for everybody, like up-to-date test results of flat screen TV-sets, crisps or beer tapping.
LOOKING BACK I
The ECC at University
Last month, our advisors were invited twice to information events at the universities of Trento and Bolzano and got the occasion to meet students and give them useful tips regarding their rights as European consumers, that is, consumers of goods and services within the European market.The main issues concerned topics of special interest for students like tele purchase contracts, package tours, plane passengers’ rights, e-commerce and spam (for example, the so-called ’winning-mails’) Another issue of the events was the off-court settlement of legal quarrels concerning consumers’ rights.
LOOKING BACK II
Information Campaign Travellers’ Rights
About 45% of all the 4,500 complaints reported to the ECC in 2007 concerned the field of travelling.Thus, in order to inform consumers properly about their rights as travellers just before the main holidays, the ECC organised an information campaign in the three biggest cities of South Tyrol (Bolzano, Merano, Bressanone). On an info-point in the pedestrian zones, the consumers could get information material regarding travelling and holidays as well as legal advise and practical tips by our advisors.
These information materials are also available at our Consumer Centre in Bolzano, Via Brennero 3, or on the phone 0471/980939 from Monday to Friday from 8 am to 4 pm.
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ECC
via Brennero 3
I - 39100 Bolzano
tel.: ++39 0471 980939
fax: ++39 0471 980239