Turkey: Significant Amendments to the Consumer Protection Law and Property Ownership Law

Tüketici Hukuku

The Law on the Amendment to the Consumer Protection Law and Property Ownership Law numbered 7392 ("Law") has been published in the Official Gazette which is numbered 31796 and dated 1 April 2022.

Significant Amendments:

Installments Sales

With the Amendment, one-tenth of the remaining debt has been changed to one-tenth of the entire debt. So, the consumer default will occur in the case one-tenth of the entire debt is not paid twice, not one-tenth of the remaining debt not paid twice.

Before the Amendment, a consumer would be in default in case not pay one-fourth of the remaining debt. The “Remaining” part has been removed from the Consumer Protection Law. With this removal, the consumer will be in default in case not pay one-fourth of the entire debt.

Consumer Loan

In cases where the consumer repays the entire loan debt within 14 days, which is the withdrawal period, it will be accepted that the loan has been withdrawn and the payments will be arranged within this scope.

Written notification obligation regarding interest rate changes in indefinite term loan agreements is limited to an increase in the interest rate.

Loan Protection Insurance

The consumer's written or digital data storage express request for a credit agreement which concludes a loan protection insurance is obligatory.

If a creditor asks for a credit agreement that concludes a loan protection insurance, it must offer an alternative credit agreement that does not conclude a loan protection insurance.

The consumer loan agreement cannot be made conditional on the purchase of ancillary financial products and services unless those are related to the loan.

Prepaid Housing Sales

The obligation of the seller to deliver the house within the time promised in the agreement is clearly stated. The maximum period that can be regulated in the agreement has been extended from 36 months to 48 months.

Distance Sales Contracts

The delivery of the goods must be maximum of 30 days, except for the products prepared in line with the consumer's request and personal needs.

Intermediary service providers and sellers will be jointly and severally liable to the consumer.

If the consumer has a loss due to the actions of the intermediary service provider, the intermediary service provider is obliged to compensate for this loss.

Timeshare and Long-term Vacation Service Contracts

The pre-paid timeshare contracts cannot be established with consumers, including contracts granting timeshare rights. The timeshare contracts can be established for a maximum of ten years, excluding contracts granting timeshare rights.

In cases where the consumer notifies the provider 90 days before the start of the holiday, that the consumer is not going to use the holiday right, the provider will not be able to charge the consumer for that period.

Refurbished Products

The refurbished products have been introduced into the Law with the Amendment.

Refurbished products; are used goods offered for resale by improving their hardware, software, or physical properties. Technological products such as software, hardware, and computers can be renewed and sold.

Refurbished products will have a 1-year warranty period.

Consumer Arbitral Tribunals

The limit of the disputes that the consumer arbitral tribunals are in charge of increased to TRY 30,000.

Timeshare Right

The condition that the timeshare right should not last less than a certain 7 days a year has been increased to 15 days.

Entering in Force

The provisions of the Law regarding timeshare and long-term holiday service contracts; the fourth paragraph of article 77 of the Law numbered 6502 amended by Article 15, and the second and third paragraphs of the provisional article 3; article 18 added to the Law numbered 6502 with article 17, enters into force on the date of their publication.

Other provisions will enter into force 6 months after their publication.

You can reach the full text of the Law here.