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CJEU rules consumers can claim refunds for abusive clauses after three years
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has ruled that consumers are entitled to claim refunds for amounts charged under abusive clauses, even if more than three years have passed since the charges were applied.
The ruling originated from a dispute in Germany involving a district heating contract signed in 2012 between the civil society group Glarner and the energy company SVB. The contract included a formula for tariff reviews that led to several price increases between 2015 and 2020. While German courts had declared the clause used for these increases abusive, local jurisprudence prevented claims for any increases not contested within a three-year window.
The CJEU rejected this limitation, stating that preventing consumers from recovering money charged under a condition later declared invalid is contrary to EU law. The court also noted that once an abusive clause is removed, the contract should generally remain in force without that specific condition, unless a judge must substitute it with national law to prevent the entire contract from being voided.
Entities
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 2 SOURCES] Consumers can claim refunds for amounts charged under abusive clauses even if more than three years have passed since they were applied. www.deia.eus · theobjective.com
- [● 2 SOURCES] Once an abusive clause is removed, the contract should generally remain in force without that specific condition. www.deia.eus · theobjective.com
- [● 2 SOURCES] It is contrary to EU law to allow charges from a condition declared invalid to persist due to the expiration of a three-year limitation period. www.deia.eus · theobjective.com