The Regulation on the Amendment of the Regulation on Warranty Certificate (in Turkish “Garanti Belgesi Yönetmeliğinde Değişiklik Yapılmasına Dair Yönetmelik”), the Regulation on the Amendment of the Regulationon After Sales Services (in Turkish “Satış Sonrası Hizmetler Yönetmeliğinde Değişiklik Yapılmasına Dair Yönetmelik”) and the Regulation on the Amendment of the Regulation on Introduction and User Manual (in Turkish “Tanıtma ve Kullanma Kılavuzu Yönetmeliğinde Değişiklik Yapılmasına Dair Yönetmelik”) (herein after collectively referred to as the “Regulations”) were published in the Official Gazette dated November 5, 2020 and numbered 31295 and have entered into force as of  January 1, 2021.

The Regulations introduce following amendments on legislation regarding consumer protection; Regulation on Warranty Certificate, Regulation on After Sales Services and Regulation on Introduction and User Manual, all detailed below.

The term “Permanent Data Storage” was included in the Regulations which is defined as a “short text message, e-mail, internet, disc, CD, DVD, memory card and any similar tool or setting, which enables the information sent to the consumer to be recorded and copied for a reasonable period of time in accordance with its purpose”.

Regulation on Warranty Certificate was published in the official gazette dated June 13, 2014 and numbered 29029.

In accordance with the Article 5 of the Regulation on Warranty Certificate, Manufacturers and importers are obliged to issue a warranty certificate in an understandable language, in a clear, simple and readable manner, for the unused products which are included in the list annexed to this Regulation.

The following information must be included in the warranty certificate, as per the Article 7:
The company name, address, phone number and other contact information of the manufacturer or importer company and the signature and stamp of the authorized person,
The company name, address, phone number and other contact information of the seller and the signature and stamp of the authorized person,
Invoice date and number,
The type, brand, model of the product and, if any, the banderol and serial number,
The date and place of delivery of the product to the consumer,
Warranty period,
Maximum repair period,
Information regarding that the entire product, including all of its parts, is under warranty during the warranty period,
Information on the optional rights provided to the consumer
Information on usage errors,
Information regarding that consumers can make their complaints and objections to consumer courts and consumer arbitration committees,
Other rights provided to the consumer, if any.

As per the Regulation on the Amendment of the Regulation on Warranty Certificate, the following amendments were made in certain provisions of the Regulation:

The Regulation on After Sales Services is published in the Official Gazette dated June 13, 2014 and numbered 29029.

Manufacturers and importers are required to obtain a Ministry-approved after-sales service qualification certificate for the products in the annexed list. After-sales service qualification certificate is valid for two years and must be renewed before its validity period expires.

The manufacturers and importers are obliged to establish an authorized service station to provide after-sales services for each product group specified in the annexed list during the expected life of the product, with sufficient technical staff, in the location, number and characteristics determined in the annexed list, in accordance with the Article 5.

It is obligatory for the service stations to issue a document regarding the receipt of the defective goods delivered to them or received by them, except for the defective goods sent to them by cargo.
Service stations are also obliged to issue a service receipt for the products delivered to consumers.

As per Article 2 of the Amending Regulation, an additional sub-clause was added to the Article 11 of the Regulation on After Sales Services setting forth that;

The Regulation on Introduction and User Manual was published in the Official Gazette dated June 13, 2014 and numbered 29029.

All the goods, which are in scope of this Regulation, are obliged to be sold with a Turkish introduction and user guide issued in a clear, simple and understandable manner.

It is mandatory to include the following information in the introduction and user manual, as per the Article 7:

The obligation to issue introduction and user manual, information required to be included in the introduction and user manual and liabilities of the manufacturer, importer and sellers are main subjects regulated under the Regulation on Introduction and User Manual.

In accordance with the Article 3 of the Regulation on the Amendment of the Regulation on Introduction and User Manual, the following provisions were added to the Article 7 of the Regulation on Introduction and User Manual titled “Information required to be included in the introduction and user manual”.

Hence;

Administrative Fines Applicable in 2021 Under the Consumer Protection Law

Communiqué Regarding Administrative Fines Applicable in 2021 Under Article 77 of the Consumer Protection Law Numbered 6502 (in Turkish “6502 sayılı Tüketicinin Korunması Hakkında Kanunun 77 nci Maddesine Göre 2021 Yılında Uygulanacak Olan İdari Para Cezalarına İlişkin Tebliğ”) was published in the Official Gazette dated December 26, 2020 and numbered 31346 and has also entered into force on January 1, 2021.

Hereunder, the administrative fines under the Consumer Protection Law are increased by 9.11%, in accordance with the revaluation rate set in Tax Procedure Law General Communiqué numbered 521, as from January 1st, 2021. Specifically, companies that;