Consumer Rights Directive

1. Member States shall ensure that the consumer has a period of 14 calendar days to withdraw from a contract without penalty and without giving any reason. That period shall be extended to 30 calendar days in distance contracts relating to personal pension operations.

The withdrawal period referred to in the first subparagraph shall begin either:

(a) from the day of the conclusion of the distance contract; or

(b) from the day on which the consumer receives the contractual terms and conditions and the information in accordance with Article 16a, if that is later than the date in point (a) of this subparagraph. If the consumer has not received the contractual terms and conditions and the information in accordance with Article 16a, the withdrawal period shall in any event expire 12 months and 14 days after the conclusion of the distance contract. This shall not apply if the consumer has not been informed about his or her right of withdrawal in accordance with Article 16a(1), point (p).

2. The right of withdrawal shall not apply to the following:

(a) consumer financial services whose price depends on fluctuations in the financial market outside the trader’s control, which might occur during the withdrawal period, such as services related to:

— foreign exchange,

— money market instruments,

— transferable securities,

— units in collective investment undertakings,

— financial-futures contracts, including equivalent cash-settled instruments,

— forward interest-rate agreements (FRAs),

— interest-rate, currency and equity swaps,

— options to acquire or dispose of any instruments referred to in this point, including equivalent cash-settled instruments. This category includes in particular options on currency and on interest rates;

(b) travel and baggage insurance policies or similar short-term insurance policies of less than one month’s duration;

(c) contracts the performance of which has been fully completed by both parties at the consumer’s express request before the consumer exercises his or her right of withdrawal.

3. The consumer shall be considered to have exercised his or her right of withdrawal within the withdrawal period referred to in paragraph 1 if he or she has sent the communication concerning the exercise of the right of withdrawal before that period expired.

4. Where an ancillary service relating to the distance contract for financial service is provided by the trader or by a third party on the basis of an agreement between that third party and the trader, the consumer shall not be bound by the ancillary contract if the consumer exercises his or her right of withdrawal in accordance with this Article. Where the consumer chooses to terminate the ancillary contract, it shall be without any costs for the consumer.

5. This Article shall be without prejudice to any rule of national law establishing a period of time during which the performance of the contract may not begin.

6. Where another Union act governing specific financial services contains rules on the right of withdrawal, only rules of that Union act on the right of withdrawal shall apply to those specific financial services, unless otherwise provided in that other Union act. Where that other Union act gives Member States the right to choose between the right of withdrawal and an alternative, such as a reflection period, only the corresponding rules of that Union act shall apply to those specific financial services, unless otherwise provided in that other Union act.

7. By way of derogation from this Article, Member States may choose to instead apply the following provisions to the following financial services with regard to the right of withdrawal or a reflection period:

(a) Article 14(6) of Directive 2014/17/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council to credit agreements exempted from the scope of that Directive by Article 3(2) thereof; and

(b) Articles 26 and 27 of Directive (EU) 2023/2225 of the European Parliament and of the Council to credit agreements exempted from the scope of that Directive by Article 2(2) thereof.