Government Order No. 21 “On consumer protection.”

The State, through the means provided by law, protects citizens in their capacity as consumers, ensuring the necessary framework for unrestricted access to products and services, their complete information about their essential characteristics, ensuring the rights and legitimate interests of natural persons against unfair practices, their participation in the substantiation and making of decisions that interest them as consumers. Consumer shall be intended any natural person or group of natural persons constituted in associations, who act for purposes outside their commercial, industrial or production, craft or liberal activity. Economic operator shall be intended authorized natural or legal person, who, as part of his professional activity, manufactures, imports, transports or sells products or parts thereof or provides services. Safe product shall be intended the product which, used under normal or foreseeable conditions, presents no risks or which presents minimal risks, taking into account its use. Use-by date for food products shall be intended the time limit/date established by the manufacturer until which products that from a microbiological point of view have a high degree of perishability and are likely to present an immediate danger to the health of their consumers after a short time retain the specific characteristics, if the conditions of transport, handling, storage and preservation have been respected. Date of minimum durability shall be intended the date established by the manufacturer until which a food product retains its specific characteristics under appropriate storage conditions. The main rights of consumers are: (a) to be protected against the risk of purchasing a product or service that could harm their life, health or safety or affect their rights and legitimate interests; (b) to be fully, correctly and accurately informed about the essential characteristics of the products and services, so that the decision they adopt in relation to them shall meet their needs as best as possible, as well as to be educated as consumers; (c) to have access to markets that provide them with a varied range of quality products and services; (d) to be compensated for the damages generated by the inadequate quality of products and services, using for this purpose means provided by law; and (e) to organize themselves in consumer associations, in order to defend their interests. It is prohibited to sell products or provide services which, used under normal conditions, may endanger the life, health or safety of consumers. The production, import and sale of counterfeit or counterfeit products are prohibited.