The Register for Customer Complaints
Businesses operating a shop have to comply with a number of different consumer protection requirements, one of which is to display a Register for Customer Complaints (or the so-called “Customers’ Booklet”).
The Register for Customer Complaints is printed in A4 or A5 format and contains at least 10 numbered pages (each with two or three copies, depending on the format).
The cover page is printed with the title and some passages from the relevant regulation (Act CLXIV of 2005 on Trade / Article 5.4).
The Register must be displayed in a visible and easily accessible place, and a pen must also be provided. The cover of the book shall be authenticated by the local notary with a stamp, a ribbon in the national colours, and his signature. The notary shall immediately authenticate the Register with their signature and stamp on request of the trader, provided that the Register complies with the aforementioned regulation. In the case of a commercial activity subject to prior notification or special authorisation, the notary shall, at the trader's request made at the time when the notification is submitted, certify the first Register to be used by the trader. The date of authorisation must be in accordance with the registration of the business. From then on, the Register can be legally used. The date of putting the Register into use shall be certified by the trader operating the shop by his signature and stamp.
HOW TO USE THE REGISTER
Complaints and suggestions relating to the operation of the shop and the commercial activities carried out there may be recorded in the Register for Customer Complaints. Customers may not be prevented from exercising their right to enter their complaints and suggestions into the Register, nor can they be influenced while doing so. The trader must investigate and respond to complaints entered in the Register within 30 days.
The Register must be available in all places of sale, catering, repair, and consumer goods rental (shops, market stalls, restaurants, canteens, motels, petrol stations, etc.) which have direct contact with consumers.
Within a period of two years, the authorities entitled to control commercial activities may examine the entries in the Register as well as the copies of the replies given to written customer complaints.
The customer will receive a copy of their original entry. The original entry, which contains the name and address of the customer, remains in the Register. This is how the Register was used until recently.
GDPR
Due to the European Union's data protection reform (GDPR), starting on 26 April 2019, the rules changed. Since then, the page containing the original complaint or suggestion must be removed immediately after the customer has made an entry, so that the previous entries and the details of the people who made those entries cannot be seen by other consumers. The trader must keep these pages in a safe place and show them to the authorities if necessary.
IMPROPER TREATMENT
A trader who handles the Register for Customer Complaints improperly commits an offence and may be liable to pay a fine.
Experience from consumer protection inspections shows that the most common problems with the Register include the following: the Register is not in a visible place in the shop; the consumers’ entries are often not answered within the required time frame; and the Register has not been certified by a notary.