E-Commerce in Serbia is currently facing serious legal consequences, primarily because many e-commerce businesses disregard legal regulations governing this type of activity.
Ultimately, such conduct leads to various legal issues and penalties once the inspection authorities get involved, and these penalties are relatively easy to avoid.
If you want your e-commerce store to be fully compliant with applicable legislation and to avoid the legal risks associated with non-compliance, read on to learn which key documents you must have in place and which steps you need to take to protect your business.
E-Commerce and complaints
As online sales require clearly defined terms of business in order to protect consumer rights, one of the first documents that every e-commerce in Serbia should have is the Rulebook, i.e. the Policy on consumer complaints for goods purchased through an online store.
This document, which should otherwise be publicly available on a separate page of your e-commerce website, clearly defines the complaint handling procedure following the Consumer Protection Act of the Republic of Serbia.
It ensures transparency, consumer protection, and specifies the seller’s obligations, all to avoid misunderstandings and possible disputes.
What should this regulation contain? Typically:
- Definitions of important terms in eCommerce (e.g. distance contract, consumer, merchant, seller, etc.)
- Rights and obligations of the consumer (e.g. the right to withdraw from the contract, the right to complain, etc.)
- Provisions on the non-conformity of the goods (and what are the consumer’s rights if the goods are non-conforming to the contract)
- Complaints procedure (how to submit a complaint, deadlines for submitting and resolving complaints, etc.)
- Obligations of the seller (e.g. the obligation to return money within a certain period if the consumer terminates the contract)
- Contact information – address, email, and phone number for submitting complaints
In addition to these basic provisions, your rulebook may contain additional information depending on the specifics of your business.
Note: In addition to the regulations, every e-commerce in Serbia needs forms (pelzers) of emails or decisions on accepting or rejecting complaints, as well as confirmation of receipt of complaints. In this way, consistency in communication and compliance with legal procedures is ensured.
All these documents can be drawn up for you by a lawyer for corporate law and online sales.
Online sales and obligations of the e-commerce merchant for consumer protection
Online sales entail several key obligations that every e-commerce in Serbia must fulfill to comply with legal regulations and to guarantee consumer protection.
The six main obligations of eCommerce merchants to protect consumers are:
- Informing the consumer before concluding the contract
- Delivery of goods within the agreed time
- Compliance of the goods with the contract
- Legal guarantee (compliance)
- The right to withdraw from the contract
- Refund of payments
You can read more about each of these obligations individually below.
Informing the consumer before concluding a distance contract in the case of e-commerce
Before the consumer clicks on Buy now or Order, you as a merchant have a legal obligation to provide him with clear and transparent information about the product he is buying, price, payment method, delivery and all other key details.
The bottom line is that the customer must know exactly what he is buying, at what price, and under what conditions, without unpleasant surprises after ordering.
According to the Consumer Protection Act of the Republic of Serbia, every merchant is obliged to inform the customer of the following items before concluding a distance contract:
- Basic information about the product/service – what exactly is being bought and what are the product’s characteristics.
- Information about the merchant, including the company name, registration number, address, and contact phone number.
- A clearly defined sales price or the method of its calculation, as well as delivery costs, if any.
- Method of payment and delivery
- The method of declaring a complaint and responsibility for the non-conformity of the goods
- The right to terminate the contract and the conditions under which it is possible
- Possibilities of out-of-court settlement of disputes
If you do not provide the customer with this information before the online sale or purchase, the customer can request the cancellation of the contract, regardless of whether you intended to mislead them or not.
E-Commerce and delivery of goods
Another key obligation of e-commerce merchants in online sales is to deliver the goods to the customer within the agreed time, together with all the necessary documents, including the cancellation form and warranty card.
According to the law, the merchant has a maximum of 30 days from the conclusion of the contract to deliver the ordered product or provide the contracted service, unless otherwise agreed in advance with the customer.
If the seller cannot deliver the goods within that period (whether due to problems with stocks, delays in transport, or other circumstances), he is obliged to inform the consumer about this without delay.
The customer can then decide if they want to wait, accept an alternative solution, or request a refund.
All the merchant’s obligations and consumer’s rights in connection with the delivery of goods are based on the principles of consumer protection and must be in accordance with legal regulations regarding online sales (i.e. distance sales).
Compliance of the goods with the distance contract in the case of online sales
In the case of online sales, the e-commerce merchant is also obliged to deliver goods to the customer that are in accordance with the contract. In other words, the goods you deliver to the consumer must match the agreed specifications and their expectations.
When are goods considered to be equivalent to a contract? Then, when it meets the following criteria:
- Corresponds to the description given by the seller and has the properties shown in the samples or models.
- It has the properties required for the specific purpose for which the buyer is purchasing it, provided that the seller was aware of it.
- It is suitable for the regular use of goods of this type.
- Corresponds to the quality and functionality that the consumer can expect, taking into account the nature of the goods and the public promises of the seller or manufacturer (e.g. advertisements, declarations on the packaging).
As far as deadlines are concerned, the seller is responsible for the conformity of the goods (i.e., non-conformity) that appear within two years from the date of transfer of risk to the consumer, and this deadline cannot be shortened by contract. For second-hand goods, the contract may stipulate a shorter term, but not less than one year.
Otherwise, all costs necessary to bring the goods into conformity with the contract – including labor, materials, collection, and delivery – are borne by the merchant. However, the seller can claim compensation from the manufacturer in the supply chain.
Legal guarantee for goods for online sales (compliance)
Unlike liability for non-conformity, which is legally binding, a warranty is an additional, contractual step in online sales.
As a retailer or manufacturer (guarantor), you can offer your customers additional benefits related to product quality and durability. Any public statement of quality, whether in sales or advertising, may be considered a warranty.
The seller is obliged to issue a guarantee in electronic form, while he is obliged to provide a written guarantee on paper only if the consumer expressly requests it. However, a written guarantee can facilitate business and provide additional legal certainty.
Now, what must the warranty card contain?
It must contain:
- Consumer rights under the law, with a clear statement that the guarantee does not exclude legal rights to the conformity of the goods.
- Name and address of the guarantor.
- Name and address of the seller, if he is not the guarantor.
- Date of delivery of the goods to the consumer.
- Identification data about the goods (model, type, serial number, etc.).
- Content of the guarantee, conditions, and procedure for exercising rights under the guarantee.
- Duration of the warranty period (which, as a seller, you must not shorten!) and geographical validity of the warranty.
Odustanak od ugovora u na daljinu i drugi obavezni akti kod internet prodaje
The right to cancel a distance contract is a key part of consumer protection in cases where the seller and the consumer are not immediately present.
Namely, in the case of online sales, consumers cannot examine the goods before buying in the same way as in a physical store. Therefore, the Consumer Protection Act provides additional protection to consumers when shopping online.
What does the law say?
The law states that consumers have the right to cancel the contract within 14 days of receiving the goods or services, without having to give a reason. This right allows consumers to change their mind and return purchased goods, even if it is not damaged. In that case, you as a merchant are obliged to refund the consumer in full.
Regarding the cancellation of the contract, in addition to the invoice, pre-contractual notice, warranty card (if a warranty has been agreed), and instructions for use and installation (if it is a technical product), you are also obliged to submit a contract cancellation form with the goods you deliver to the consumer. The form for withdrawal is prescribed by the Rulebook on the form and content of the form for withdrawal from distance contracts or contracts concluded outside business premises .
In any case, in order to fulfill all your legal obligations, it is best to include all information about the right to cancel the distance contract, the deadlines and the cancellation procedure in your Terms of Sale, as well as to send them to consumers in an automatic email sent after each order.
Why is this important?
Because if the consumer does not receive information about the right to withdraw from the contract at a distance as prescribed by law, the withdrawal period is extended by 12 months, which is not to your advantage.
Also, it is important because the consumer will not be liable for the reduced value of the goods if the seller has not provided him with a notice of the right to cancel the distance contract.
Refund of payments to the consumer
As we have already mentioned, the Law clearly stipulates that consumers with online sales have the right to cancel the contract within 14 days of receiving the goods or services, in which case you as a seller are obliged to return the consumer’s money in full (including delivery costs).
You must fulfill the refund obligation no later than 14 days from the day you received the cancellation form, using the same means of payment that the consumer used in the first place transaction (unless the consumer has expressly agreed to the use of another means of payment and provided that the consumer does not incur any additional costs due to such a refund).
It is also important to note that you, as a seller, have the right to delay the refund until you receive the goods back or until the consumer provides proof that he sent you the goods.
E-Commerce, terms of use, and privacy policy
If you sell online in Serbia, the terms of use and privacy policy are the last two documents that your e-commerce should have on its site.
Although the law does not prescribe the mandatory placement of the Terms of Use on the site, given that their correct definition is important not only for the protection of your business, but also for the fulfillment of the legal obligation to inform users about their rights and obligations when shopping online, we come to the conclusion that in practice you are still obliged to have them.
Namely, according to the Electronic Commerce Act of the Republic of Serbia, you are obliged to point out:
- Business name or name of your company
- Headquarters of the company
- Email address and other contact information
- Data on registration in the Business register (in Serbia: APR) and TIN (Tax Identification Number)
Also, according to the Consumer Protection Act, you must provide information about:
- The consumer’s right to cancel the purchase
- How to complain and return the product
- Terms of delivery and payment
It follows from all this that you still need to have Terms of Use as an e-commerce site in Serbia.
The good thing about this is that if your lawyer has already helped you draft all the previously mentioned documents in this text, drafting the Terms of Use will be much easier for him due to the obvious overlap of information.
Just keep in mind that the Terms of Use are not automatically legally binding, but must be expressly accepted by your users.
You can achieve this through clickwrap contracts (where the user has to mark a checkbox confirming consent) and browsewrap contracts (where there is an automatic acceptance of the terms by using the site, which is more convenient, but less legally secure).
As for the privacy policy, you must have it as well, because the Personal Data Protection Act prescribes the obligation to inform users about the processing of their data.
A privacy policy typically contains information about:
- What data do you collect from users through the website, and for what purposes
- What is the legal basis of data processing
- To whom the data may be forwarded (e.g. to data processors)
- What are the rights of the user concerning the data
- Information about cookies and their use
- International data transfer rules, if applicable, etc.
The privacy and cookie policy must be easily accessible and understandable to all site visitors, not just customers. You can read in detail about the company’s obligations regarding the privacy policy here .
Online sales and advertising
Online sales in Serbia are closely related to Internet advertising, which includes the promotion of products or services through Internet presentations, social networks, applications, or any other form of Internet communication.
The Trade Act of the Republic of Serbia clearly defines what proper advertising should look like and what you should pay attention to in order to avoid legal problems.
For example many online merchants in Serbia throughout the year use expressions such as DISCOUNT, 50% OFF, while at the same time displaying a crossed-out price (which was never even valid) and a new, reduced price highlighted in red.
Such practices are not legal because the Trade Act prohibits advertising that creates an apparent price reduction, especially if the previous price is falsely displayed or if the product or service was offered at that old price for a very short period.
Also, the Trade Act requires that each advertisement must clearly indicate which product or service the discount applies to, as well as the time period during which the promotion lasts. In conclusion: the discount cannot be unlimited in time.
Finally, it is prohibited to advertise sales with falsely displayed or small quantities of products, as well as apparent reduction if the price was previously set fictitiously.
The bottom line is that proper advertising requires clear communication about the actual availability of the product and its realistic discounts. If you decide to use these marketing techniques in advertising, it is important that you comply with all legal guidelines and ensure that your ads and promotions do not create a false impression of the actual value of your products or services. Advertising in accordance with the law is controlled by the market inspection and punishes business entities for advertising contrary to the law.
E-Commerce attorney
To conclude: If you plan to start online sales or already run an e-commerce business in Serbia, it is necessary to have properly drawn up legal documents – Complaints policy, complaints peltzers, distance contracts, cancellation of contract forms, terms of use and privacy policy, as well as other acts that ensure compliance with the law.
Our advice is not to use generic templates for these acts, primarily because they are not adapted to the specifics of your business, but also because they can expose you to legal risks. Downloading documents from other people’s sites, even with modifications, may constitute copyright infringement and may result in you being sued for infringement of other people’s intellectual property rights.
