Consumer Rights Bill

Page 13, line 12, at end insert—

“( )     Where, given the nature of the goods and all the circumstances existing at
the time the contract was entered into, it is reasonably foreseeable to the
parties that the consumer will not be able to ascertain whether the goods
are in conformity with the contract within the time period set down in
subsection (3), the time limit for exercising the short-term right to reject in
relation to those goods shall end once the consumer has had a reasonable
period in which to ascertain whether the goods are in conformity with the
contract.”

Page 14, line 6, leave out paragraph (a) and insert—

“(a)   do so as soon as reasonably practicable and in any event within 14
days, unless the consumer expressly agrees otherwise;

(aa)   do so without significant inconvenience to the consumer; and”

Page 30, line 30, after “is” insert “reasonably”

Page 30, line 32, after “is” insert “reasonably”

Page 30, line 37, after “occasion” insert “or as soon as possible thereafter”

Page 55, line 15, at end insert—

“( )     A term which relies upon any bill of sale, as defined in section 3 of the
Bills of Sale Act (1878) Amendment Act 1882 (construction of Act), to
reduce the level of consumer protection in relation to contracts
concerning consumer credit.”

Insert the following new Clause—

“Duty to provide an internet service that protects children from digital content

(1)     Internet service providers must provide to subscribers an internet access
service which excludes adult content unless all the conditions of subsection
(3) have been fulfilled.

(2)     Where mobile telephone operators provide a telephone service to
subscribers which includes an internet access service, they must ensure this
service excludes adult content unless all the conditions of subsection (3)
have been fulfilled.

(3)     The conditions are—

(a)   the subscriber “opts-in” to subscribe to a service that includes adult
content;

(b)   the subscriber is aged 18 or over; and

(c)   the provider of the service has an age verification policy which
meets the standards set out by OFCOM in subsection (4) and which
has been used to confirm that the subscriber is aged 18 or over
before a user is able to access adult content.

(4)     It shall be the duty of OFCOM to set, and from time to time to review and
revise, standards for the—

(a)   filtering of adult content in line with the standards set out in section
319 of the Communications Act 2003;

(b)   age verification policies to be used under subsection (3) before a
user is able to access adult content; and

(c)   filtering of content by age or subject category by providers of
internet access services and mobile phone operators.

(5)     The standards set out by OFCOM under subsection (4) must be contained
in one or more codes.

(6)     Before setting standards under subsection (5), OFCOM must publish, in
such a manner as they think fit, a draft of the proposed code containing
those standards.

(7)     After publishing the draft code and before setting the standards, OFCOM
must consult relevant persons and organisations.

(8)     It shall be the duty of OFCOM to establish procedures for the handling and
resolution in a timely manner of complaints about the observance of
standards set under subsection (4), including complaints about incorrect
filtering of content.

(9)     OFCOM may designate any body corporate to carry out its duties under
this section in whole or in part.

(10)     OFCOM may not designate a body under subsection (9) unless, as respects
that designation, they are satisfied that the body—

(a)   is a fit and proper body to be designated;

(b)   has consented to being designated;

(c)   has access to financial resources that are adequate to ensure the
effective performance of its functions under this section; and

(d)   is sufficiently independent of providers of internet access services
and mobile phone operators.

(11)     In this section, internet service providers and mobile telephone operators
shall at all times be held harmless of any claims or proceedings, whether
civil or criminal, providing that at the relevant time, the internet access
provider or the mobile telephone operator—

(a)   was following the standards and code set out by OFCOM in
subsection (4); and

(b)   acting in good faith.

(12)     For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in subsections (1) and (2) prevents
providers of internet access services and mobile phone operators from
providing additional levels of filtering content.

(13)     In this section—

“adult content” means an internet access service that contains harmful
and offensive materials from which persons under the age of
eighteen are protected;

“harmful and offensive materials” has the same meaning as in section
3 of the Communications Act 2003 (general duties of OFCOM);

“material from which persons under the age of eighteen are
protected” means material specified in the OFCOM standards
under section 319(2)(a) of the Communications Act 2003 (OFCOM’s
standards code);

“opts-in” means a subscriber notifies the service provider of his or her
consent to subscribe to a service that includes adult content.”

Insert the following new Clause—

“Service contracts relating to students: complaints

In cases where there is a contract under Chapter 4 of Part 1 to supply a
service between a student (as the consumer) and an institution (as the
trader), the following are qualifying institutions for the purposes of Part 2
of the Higher Education Act 2004, insofar as any complaint under the
provisions of the 2004 Act relates to that service contract—

(a)   an institution granted specific course designation by the Secretary
of State pursuant to regulation 5 of the Education (Student Support)
Regulations 2011 (SI 2011/1986) and section 22(1) of the Teaching
and Higher Education Act 1998; and

(b)   an institution granted degree awarding powers under section 76 of
the Further and Higher Education Act 1992.”