Rights
LAW NO: 4077
LAW ABOUT CONSUMER PROTECTION
Acceptance Date: 23 February 1995
Promulgation and Announcement with Official Gazette: 8 March 1995 - Issue: 22221
5.t. Code, c.34 - s.
FIRST PART
OBJECTIVE, SCOPE, DEFINITIONS
OBJECTIVE
ARTICLE 1 – Objective of this law is to take protective, informative, educative, damage compensative, environmental risks protective precautions for protecting the health, safety and economical benefits of consumers and to encourage consumers to protect their self-protective attempts and to regulate the rules about encouraging voluntary organizations to form the policies related to these attempts in accord with (...) (*) general interest.
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(*) The phrase "and with necessities of economy" in Article 1 was took out from the text to be come into force after three months of the publication of law, in accordance with the first article in law number 4822 dated 3.6.2003 that was published in official gazette with the issue number 25048 dated 3.14.2003.
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SCOPE
ARTICLE 2 – This law applies to all kinds of (Alternate clause:4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.2 - Enforcement m.38) "consumer activities" in which the consumer constitutes one of the parties in product and service markets with the purposes stated in Article 1.
DEFINITIONS
ARTICLE 3.- When applying this law below definitions are valid;
a) Ministry: Ministry of Industry and Trade,
b) Minister: Minister of Industry and Trade,
b) Commodity: Movable commodity being subject of trade,
d) Service: Physical or mental activities performed in return for a fee or profit,
e) Standard: Turkish standard,
f) Consumer: Person or corporation who buys a commodity or service for special purposes and uses it as an end user,
g) Seller: Person or corporation who provides commodities and services to consumers including public bodies and organizations,
h) Manufacturer-Producer: Bodies who produce commodity or service or raw materials of these commodities and services or intermediate products provided to consumers including public bodies and organizations,
i) Consumer Organizations: Societies, foundations and consumer cooperatives established to protect consumers.
ARTICLE 3.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.3 - Enforcement m.38) When applying this law below definitions are valid;
a) Ministry: Ministry of Industry and Trade,
b) Minister: Minister of Industry and Trade,
c) Commodity: Movable commodity that is a subject of commerce, immovable commodities for lodging and vacation purposes and intangible commodities such as software, audio, visuals to be used in electronic environment,
d) Service: All kinds of activities performed in return for a fee or profit excluding commodity supply,
e) Consumer: Person or corporation who buys, uses or benefits from a commodity or service without commercial or professional purposes,
f) Seller: Person or corporation who provides commodities to consumers including public corporations within their commercial or professional activity scopes,
g) Supplier: Person or corporation who provides services to consumers including public corporations within their commercial or professional activity scopes,
g) Consumer operations: All kinds of judicial acts performed between the consumer and seller-supplier within commodity and service markets,
ı) Manufacturer-Producer: Bodies who produce commodity or service or raw materials of these commodities and services or intermediate products provided to consumers including public bodies and organizations and who sell products by putting their distinctive signs, trademark or trade name on the product,
j) Importer: Person or corporation who imports and sells commodity or service or raw materials of these commodities and services or intermediate products provided to consumers including public bodies and organizations,
j) Creditor: Bank, private financial organization and financing companies authorized to give loans to consumers by their legislations,
l) Advertisement giver: Person or corporation who prepares advertisements to promote the product/service it produces or markets, increase the sales or to strengthen its image after creating it and who publishes, distributes or shows these advertisements in other ways in which its company or commodity/service brand is included,
m) Advertiser: Person or corporation who is a commercial communication specialist preparing the commercial advertisement or announcements in accordance with the advertiser giver’s needs and mediating in publishing these advertisements and announcements on behalf of the advertisement giver,
n) Channel organization: Person or corporation who owns, manages or leases the communication channels or all kinds of tools that bring the commercial advertisement or announcements to the target audience,
o) Technical regulation: All kinds of regulations that have to be conformed and come to force compulsively by publishing in Official Gazette by the related ministry and that specify one or a number of properties, processing and production methods, terminology, symbol, packaging, marking and compliance evaluation operations of a product and service including the administrative rules,
p) Consumer organizations: Societies, foundations or top level organizations of these that established to protect consumers,
r) (Annex: 5582 - 21.2.2007 / m.21) Lodging financing organization: Organizations stated in 2. subclause of the article 38/A of the Capital Market Law.
SECOND PART
CONSUMER PROTECTION AND CLARIFICATION
DEFECTIVE COMMODITIES AND SERVICES
ARTICLE 4.- Commodities or services, that are contrary to qualification and/or quantity determined in their standards or promised by their sellers or included in their packaging, label, promotion and usage manual, or that include pecuniary, legal or economical defects decreasing or abolishing the benefits expected by the consumer or their worths for its usage purposes or allocation, are deemed as defective commodities or defective services.
In the case that the bought product is appeared to be defective; consumer may ask to change the product within 15 days after the date it has bought by giving the product back to the seller company or to reimburse the its price or to deduct the amount caused by the defect or to have the product repaired for free. Consumer is free to choose any of these demands. Seller is obliged to perform the demand that consumer chooses. Seller, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer and importer are responsible jointly and successively to the consumer for the defective product and/or all the damages caused by the defective product. Unawareness of the product sold being defective does not abolish this responsibility.
If the defectiveness of the product sold is concealed or it is concealed by deception from the consumer, seller cannot avoid from the responsibility by claiming that the consumer has not called upon within 15 days.
If the seller has not given guarantee for longer periods, all court cases filed by defective commodity and damages caused by it are subject to a 2 years of limitation since its deliverance to the consumer even though the defect has appeared afterwards. However, if the seller has concealed the defect of the product from the consumer by deception, it cannot benefit from the 2 years of limitation.
Above rules are valid for defective services, too. If re-appearance of the defective service is impossible or it is contrary to the results fitting the purpose, a discount from the refund is made with the amount equal to the benefit that the consumer gains from the defective service.
Above rules do not apply to commodities and services that have been bought if the consumer is aware of their defects.
It is mandatory for the seller or manufacturer to put a label titled as “Defective” that can be easily readable on the used product to be sold, repaired or defective product or on their packaging. This situation is showed on the receipt, invoice or sales slip given to the consumer, too. Above subclause rule does not apply to the sellers who sell only defective products or allocate a region like a floor or a department only to sell defective products.
DEFECTIVE COMMODITY
ARTICLE 4.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.4 - Enforcement m.38) Commodities, that are contrary to qualification or quantity effecting the qualification determined in their standards or technical regulations or informed by their sellers or included in their packaging, label, promotion and usage manual or in their advertisements and announcements, or that include pecuniary, legal or economical defects decreasing or abolishing the benefits expected by the consumer or their worths for its usage purposes or allocation, are deemed as defective commodities.
Consumer is obliged to inform the seller about the defect within thirty days after the deliverance date of the commodity. In this case the consumer has the rights of terminating the contract including refund, changing the product with its fungible without defects or price discount equal to the amount of defect or repair for free. Seller is obliged to perform the demand that consumer chooses. Consumer, with one of its optional choices, also has the right of claiming compensation from the manufacturer-producer in the cases of damages in other commodities in use and/or death and/or injuries caused by the defective commodities.
Manufacturer-produces, seller, retailer, agent, importer and creditor in accordance with the fifth subclause of 10. article are successively responsible from the defective commodity and the optional choices of the consumer included in this article. If more than one bodies are responsible from the damages caused by the defective commodity, all of the bodies are successively responsible. Unawareness of the product sold being defective does not abolish this responsible. (Alternate 3. subclause: 5582 - 21.2.2007 / m.22) Manufacturer-produces, seller, retailer, agent, importer and creditor in accordance with the fifth subclause of 10. article or ninth subclause of article 10/B are successively responsible from the defective commodity and the optional choices of the consumer included in this article. According to the ninth subclause of the article 10/B, responsibility of the creditor lodging financing organization is limited with 1 year after deliverance and with amount of loan made available. Even in the case the loans are transferred by the lodging financing organizations according to the ninth subclause of the article 10/B, the responsibility of the creditor lodging financing organization continues. Organization that take over the loan is not liable within the scope of this article. If more than one bodies are responsible from the damages caused by the defective commodity, all of the bodies are successively responsible. Unawareness of the product sold being defective does not abolish this responsibility.
With this article, if the bodies, hold responsible to the defect, do not take responsibility for longer periods for the defect, responsibility from the defective commodity is subject to a 2 years of limitation since its deliverance to the consumer even though the defect has appeared afterwards. This period is five years for immovable commodities for lodging and vacation. Requests due to all kinds of damages caused by the defective commodity are subject to three years of limitation. These requests are abolished ten years after the placement of the product to the market that caused damage. However, if the defect of the commodity is concealed from the consumer by deception or by gross fault, limitation period cannot be beneficial.
Apart from the rules regarding to the responsibility of damages caused by defective commodity, above rules are invalid for commodities bought with the awareness that they are defective.
It is mandatory for the seller or manufacturer to put a label titled as “Defective” that the consumer can easily read on the defective product or on its packaging. This label does not need to be put in the places where only defective products are sold or a floor or a department that is only allocated to sell defective products in the way that the consumer knows. Defectiveness of a commodity is shown on the receipt, invoice or sales slip given to the consumer.
Commodities that are not trusted cannot be placed on the market even with the label stating defective. Acts of law 4703 regarding to Preparation and Implementation of Technical Legislation are applied to these products.
These acts are also applied to all kinds of consumer operations about commodity sales.
DEFECTIVE SERVICE
ARTICLE 4/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.5 - Enforcement m.38) Services, that are contrary to qualification or quantity effecting the qualification determined in their standards or technical regulations or advertisements or announcements informed by the supplier, or that include pecuniary, legal or economical defects decreasing or abolishing the benefits expected by the consumer or their worths for its benefit purposes, are deemed as defective services.
Consumer must inform the defect to the supplier within thirty days after the service is performed. In this case the consumer has the rights of terminating the contract, re-benefit from the service or price discount equal to the amount of defect. If the consumer terminating the contract is not recognized by force of the situation, it is contented with price deduction. With one of the optional choices, the consumer may claim compensation within the terms stated in article 4. Supplier is obliged to perform the demand that consumer chooses.
Supplier, retailer, agent, and creditor in accordance with the fifth subclause of 10. article are successively responsible from the defective service and damages caused by the defective service and the optional choices of the consumer included in this article. Unawareness of the service provided being defective does not abolish this responsibility.
If a longer guarantee is not given, demands made due to this defective service are subject to a 2 years of limitation since its perform date even though the defect has appeared afterwards. Requests due to all kinds of damages caused by the defective service are subject to three years of limitation. However, if the defect of the service is concealed from the consumer by deception or by gross fault of supplier, limitation period cannot be beneficial.
Apart from the rules regarding to the responsibility of damages caused by defective service, above rules are invalid for services bought with the awareness that they are defective.
These acts are also applied to all kinds of consumer operations about service supply.
SALES AVOIDANCE
ARTICLE 5 – A commodity on which "representative sample” or "not for sale” labels do not exist and which is presented on the window or shelf of an organization or on a place where it can be seen obviously, means it is in stock. Seller cannot avoid from selling the commodities presented. Commodity cannot be shown as sold when it is not sold. Without a valid reason selling the services cannot be avoided.
Seller cannot attribute the sales of a commodity or service to buying the items in question with the amount, count, size or period that are defined by the seller or to buying another product or service.
If the sales of a commodity or service with a specific amount, count, size or period are subject to precedent, common commercial usage or practice, third subclause rule is not applied.
ARTICLE 5.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.6 - Enforcement m.38) Seller cannot avoid the sales of the commodities on which "representative sample” or "not for sale” labels do not exist and which are presented on the window or shelf of an organization or on a place where it can be seen obviously.
Without a valid reason supplying the services cannot be avoided.
Seller cannot attribute the sales of a commodity or service to conditions like amount, count or size specified by the seller or to buying another commodity or service if there is no precedent, common commercial usage or custom.
This rule also applies to other commodity sales and service supply contracts.
INSTALLMENT SALES
ARTICLE 6 – Consumer has the right of paying the total amount that has been indebted in advance in installment sales. In the meantime, the consumer may pay one or more installments provided that the payment is not under the amount of one installment. In both cases, the seller is obliged to make the related interest discount according to the paid amount.
If the seller is reserved the right of asking for the total amount when one or more installments are not paid, this right can be used only if; the seller has performed all of the actions expected and at least four weeks have passed after an action of the seller that was not performed and the seller has given an acceleration warning by giving at least one week. Total selling price that has been announced to the consumer and determined by both parties cannot be increased by no means.
Seller must announce the information below in written and give a copy of the contract signed between the parties to the consumer in the case of installment sales.
a) Cash sales price of the commodity and services,
b) Total sales price that will be paid with the interest according to the term,
c) Interest amount, annual rate used in the calculation of the interest and overdue interest rate,
d) Advance payment amount,
e) Payment schedule,
UNJUST TERMS IN THE CONTRACT
ARTICLE 6.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.7 – Enforcement m.38) Contract terms, that are put one sided without a negotiation between the seller or supplier and the consumer, and that cause disparity against the consumer such that it contradicts with the rule of good will in the rights and responsibilities of the parties emerged from the contract, are unjust terms.
Unjust terms included in all kinds of contracts in which one of the parties is the consumer are not binding for the consumer.
If a contract term was prepared previously and could not affect the consumer content due to its presence in standard contract, then that contract term is deemed as not negotiated with the consumer.
If the contract is deduced as a standard contract after it has been evaluated totally, negotiation of specific considerations of a term or an individual rule does not prevent this article to be applied to the rest of the contract.
If a seller or supplier claims that a standard term is discussed solely, it has the responsibility of proof of this.
Consumer contracts proposed to be prepared in written in the articles 6/A, 6/B, 6/C, 7, 9, 9/A, 10, 10/A and 11/A are prepared in a font size of at least twelve points and bold black letters and the validity of the contract does not effected by the lack of one or more terms in the contract. This defect is resolved immediately by the seller or supplier.
Ministry indicates the process and principals regarding to determine the unjust terms included in standard contracts and make these terms to be excluded form the contract text.
INSTALLMENT SALES
ARTICLE 6/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.8 - Enforcement m.38) Installment sales is a kind of sales in which the sales price is paid in at least two installments and the commodity or service is delivered or performed by the time of preparing the contract.
Installment sales contract must be prepared in written. Minimum terms that need to be included in a contract are listed below:
a) Name, title, open addresses and contact information, if available, of the consumer and seller or supplier,
b) Cash sale price including taxes of the commodity or service in Turkish Liras,
c) Total sale price that will be paid with the interest according to the term in Turkish Liras,
d) Interest amount, annual rate used in the calculation of the interest and overdue interest rate which will not exceed 30 percent of the specified interest rate,
e) Down payment amount,
f) Payment schedule,
g) Legal consequences of the debtor in the event of default.
Seller or supplier is responsible from the inclusion of these information in the contract and giving one copy of the contract signed between the parties to the consumer. If a bill is to be prepared as a valuable paper besides the contract, this bill must be prepared separately for each installment payment and only to the name. Otherwise, bill of exchange is not valid.
In installment sales, the consumer has the right to pay the total amount in advance. In the meantime, the consumer may pay one or more installments provided that the payment is not under the amount of one installment. In both cases, the seller is obliged to make the related interest discount according to the paid amount.
If the seller or supplier is reserved the right of asking for the total amount when one or more installments are not paid, this right can be used only if; the seller or supplier has performed all of the actions expected and a default event occurred due to not paying two successive installments and the total installment amount that was not paid is at least tenth of the sale price. However, the seller or supplier needs to give an acceleration warning of at least one week to use this right.
Contract terms cannot be changed against to the consumer by no means.
TIME-SHARE HOLIDAY
ARTICLE 6/B.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.9 - Enforcement m.38) Time-share holiday contracts are written contracts or contract groups, one copy of which must be given to the consumer, that are signed for at least three years and include the commitment of transfer or transfer of the usage right of one or more immovable items for a period within the contract period for each year not less than one week which is specified or is to be specified.
Process and principals regarding to Time-Share Holiday contracts are determined by the Ministry.
PACKAGE TOUR
ARTICLE 6/C.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.10 - Enforcement m.38) Package tour contracts, one copy of which must be given to the consumer, are written contracts prepared in advance that cover transportation, accommodation and at least two of other touristic services that cannot be deemed as auxiliary to these, services that are sold as all-in-one price or committed to sale and that last longer than twenty four hours or overnight accommodation.
Process and principals regarding to package tour contracts are determined by the Ministry.
SALES CAMPAIGN
ARTICLE 7.- Seller, retailer, agent, representative, manufacturer-producer and importer are responsible jointly and successively in the case when announced and committed commodity and services are not delivered on time and when behaving contrary to the agreements about price, qualification and amount for the sales done by promising to deliver or perform the commodity or the service subsequently by accepting participants to the campaigns arranged by announcing to public via newspapers, radio, television, etc.
All kinds of sales that are not considered as sales campaign but performed by the condition of deliverance or performance of the commodity or service subsequently are subject to first subclause rule.
Seller, in the sales campaign, is obliged to give information regarding to “campaign end date" and "date and form of deliverance or performance of commodity or service" in written in addition to the information stated in third subclause of 6. article.
First and second rules of article 6 are also applied to sales campaign done in installments.
ARTICLE 7.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.11 - Enforcement m.38) Sales campaign is a selling type in which participants are accepted to the campaigns arranged by announcing to the consumer via newspaper, radio, television, etc. adverts and in which the product or service is delivered or performed afterwards.
Sales campaign is done by permission of Ministry. Ministry determines which kinds of sales are subject to permission, down payment, deliverance period, manufacturer company guarantee, caution money and process and principals that must be followed in sales campaign.
In the case that deliverance or performance of announced or committed commodity or service has not been done or has done not as expected, seller, supplier, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer, importer and creditor according to fifth subclause of 10. article are successively responsible. (Alternate 3. subclause: 5582 - 21.2.2007 / m.23) In the case that deliverance or performance of announced or committed commodity or service has not been done or has done not as expected, seller, supplier, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer, importer and creditor according to fifth subclause of 10. article are successively responsible. In the case that the deliverance of the announced or committed house has not done at all, or as expected or not in time, creditor financing organization is responsible successively with the seller, supplier, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer, and importer according to ninth subclause of the article 10/B with the same amount as the loan made available. Even in the case the loans are transferred by the lodging financing organizations according to the ninth subclause of the article 10/B, the responsibility of the creditor lodging financing organization continues. Organization that takes over the loan is not liable within the scope of this article.
After the consumer decides to leave the campaign, campaign arranger is responsible from paying back all the amount that the consumer has paid until that moment provided that the deliverance date of commodity or service will not be exceeded.
Campaign arranger must give one copy of the contract to be prepared in sales campaign which includes "campaign end date" and "date and form of deliverance or performance of the commodity or service" in addition to the information stated in second subclause of article 6/A.
In the contract, unless otherwise stated, down payment cannot be higher than fourty percent of sales price of commodity or service.
Deliverance of the commodity or performance period of the service cannot exceed twelve months. This period is thirty months for immovable commodities for lodging and vacation purposes.
In the case where consumer performed all the actions about payments, deliverance of commodity or performance of service must be done in at most one month following the ending of payment.
Rules of article 6/A are also applied to installment sales campaign.
DOOR STEP SALE
ARTICLE 8 –Door step sales are trial and inspection conditioned sales worth of which exceed 53,079,000.- (fifty three million seventy nine thousand) (*) Turkish Liras and performed in the places apart from office, fair, street fair and without any pre-agreement.
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(*) Monetary limit stated in 1. subclause of article 8 was determined and placed into the text as 53,079,000.- (fifty three million seventy nine thousand) Turkish Liras valid from 1.1.2003 with the bulletin TRKGM - 2002/7 of Ministry of Industry published in the official gazette 24963 dated 12.14.2002.
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In these kinds of sales, the consumer is free to accept or reject the commodity without showing any reason until seven days of trial and inspection period. Seller is responsible from giving back the paid amount, valuable papers and all kinds of documents that make the consumer debtor due to this legal operations to the consumer within 10 days after the seller receives withdrawal notification as registered and reply paid letter or via public notary or in person and the seller is responsible from taking back the commodity in 20 days.
Consumer is obliged to compensate the loss in commodity’s commercial worth due to its usage, if using it is mentionable. Commodity being owned by the consumer does not mean a decrease in its worth on its own.
If giving back of the commodity or service is impossible or has become contrary to the purpose, the consumer is responsible from paying the amount to the seller being equal to the benefit that the consumer has had from the commodity or the service.
This article does not applied if selling the commodity or service apart from the office is precedent, common commercial usage or custom.
In the door step installment sales, 6. article rules are also applied.
Worth of 1.000.000 Turkish Liras stated in the first subclause increases by the general average price increment that occurs in the index of State Institute of Statistics at the end of October each year. This situation is announced in the Official Gazette by the Ministry in December of each year.
ARTICLE 8.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.12 - Enforcement m.38) Door step sales are sales performed in the places apart from places like office, fair, street fair.
Ministry determines the qualifications of door step sales people, door step sales that are subject or not subject to this Law and the implementation processes and principals about door step sales.
In these kinds of sales, the consumer is free to accept or reject the commodity without showing any reason or without taking any responsibility within seven days after the commodity is delivered. In the case of service sales, this period begins with the date in which the contract is signed. Unless this period expires, the seller or supplier does not have the right of asking any payment or document that makes the consumer debtor under any name in return for the commodity or service in question. Seller is responsible from taking the commodity back within 20 days after the moment that withdrawal notification is received.
Consumer is not responsible from the changes and defects caused by the usual usage of the commodity.
For the door step installment sales, article 6/A and for the door step sales campaign, article 7 are applied additionally.
LIABILITY OF THE SELLER FOR DOOR STEP SALES
ARTICLE 9 – When door step selling, the seller is responsible to give a document stating that “The consumer has the right to withdraw form buying-selling operation within seven days without taking any legal and criminal responsibilities and without showing any reason and the seller will give back all the amount that the consumer paid, all valuable papers and all kinds of documents that make the consumer a debtor due to this legal operation within ten days after the withdrawal notification sent to the seller“ with at least 12 points of font size and bold black letters along with the prepared contract, invoice or delivery receipt to the consumer in return for a report signed by the consumer stating that the rights have been told and document that describes the withdrawal right has been delivered with the open address of the seller written.
Seller is responsible to exhibit the document signed by the consumer to the court in the cases of disputes. If the seller cannot exhibit this document or does not exhibit it, it is deemed as the seller does not fulfill its debts stated in this document.
LIABILITY OF THE SELLER AND SUPPLIER WHEN DOOR STEP SALES
ARTICLE 9.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.13 - Enforcement m.38) To the door step selling contracts, descriptive information about the qualification and quantity of the commodity or service, open address to which the withdrawal notification will be made and below clause with at least sixteen points of font size and bold black letters must be added in addition to the other considerations that should be included in the contract.
We commit that the consumer has the right to withdraw the contract by rejecting the commodity or service, that was delivered such that the consumer does not take any legal or criminal responsibility and show any reason, within seven days after the contract is signed and we will take the commodity back after the withdrawal notification is received by the seller/supplier.
Consumer signs and writes the date with his/her handwriting onto the contract which includes his/her rights. Seller or supplier is responsible from the inclusion of these information in the contract and giving one copy of the contract signed between the parties to the consumer.
Proving that a contract prepared according to these article rules and the commodity is delivered to the consumer must be done by seller or supplier. Otherwise, the consumer is not limited to seven days to use the withdrawal right.
DISTANT CONTRACTS
ARTICLE 9/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.14 - Enforcement m.38) Distant contracts are contracts that are made in written, visual, phone and electronic environment or using other communication tools without coming across the consumers and in which it is decided that the commodity or service will be delivered or performed at the time of contract signing or afterwards.
Before signing the distant sales contract, information specified by the bulletin prepared by the Ministry must be given to the consumer. Unless the consumer confirms the deliverance of these information in written, the contract cannot be signed. Confirmation for contracts made in electronic environment is also done in electronic environment.
Seller and supplier perform their actions within thirty days after the order is delivered to the consumer. This period can be extended at most for ten days provided that the consumer has been informed about it previously.
Seller or supplier is responsible to prove that the deliverance of the nonmaterial commodities or provided services are complete without defects in electronic environment.
Rules about door step sales are valid for distant contracts except for rules regarding to not to ask any payment under a name or a document that makes the consumer a debtor, in return for a commodity or service that is a subject of the contract during the withdrawal period.
Seller or supplier is responsible to give back the paid amount, valuable papers and any kinds of documents that make the consumer a debtor due to this legal operation, within ten days after the withdrawal notification is received and to take back the commodity within twenty days.
CONSUMER LOAN
ARTCILE 10 – When the consumers apply for consumer loans to banks or alike financial organizations to buy a commodity or service, it is obliged that a written agreement must be done between the financial organizations and the consumer and one copy of this contract must be given to the consumer. Loan terms proposed in the contract signed between the parties cannot be changed against to the consumer within the contract period. In a contract below items are sought;
a) Annual rate that the interest is calculated,
b) Payment dates, capital, interest, fund and a payment schedule in which the other costs are stated separately,
c) Amount of consumer loan,
d) Total debt amount with interest and other items,
e) Caution money to be asked,
f) Overdue interest rate,
g) Legal consequences of a debtor when in default event,
h) Terms regarding to closure of the loan before its term,
Consumer who became indebted to banks or financial organizations can pay the total debt aforetime or can make payments before their terms or can pay one or more installments. In both cases, the seller is obliged to make the related interest and commission discounts according to the paid amount. When banks or financial organizations give loans provided that a specific commodity or service will be bought or a legal operation with a specific seller will be made, these bodies and the seller will be jointly and successively responsible to the consumer due to the defect of the commodity.
ARTICLE 10.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.15 - Enforcement m.38) Consumer loan is a cash credit that the consumers take from the creditor for the purpose of getting a commodity or service. Consumer loan contract must be prepared in written and one copy of this contract must be given to the consumer. Loan terms proposed in the contract signed between the parties cannot be changed against to the consumer within the contract period.
In a contract below items are sought;
a) Amount of consumer loan,
b) Total debt amount with interest and other items,
c) Annual rate that the interest is calculated,
d) Payment dates, capital, interest, fund and a payment schedule in which the other costs are stated separately,
e) Caution money to be asked,
f) Overdue interest rate which cannot exceed 30% of the contractual interest rate,
g) Legal consequences of a debtor when in default event,
h) Terms regarding to closure of the loan before its term
ı) When the loan is made available in a foreign currency, terms about the date of the rate of exchange that will be used in calculating the installments and total loan amount
If the creditor is reserved the right of asking the total amount when one or more installments are not paid, this right can only be used if the creditor performed all of its actions and the consumer felt into the default event by not paying two successive installments. However, the creditor needs to give an acceleration warning of at least one week to use this right. When personal warrants are given as warrants of a consumer loan, the creditor cannot ask to the guarantor to pay the debt without informing the actual debtor.
Consumer who became indebted to creditors can pay the total debt aforetime or can make payments before their terms or can pay one or more installments. In both cases, the creditor is obliged to make the related interest and commission discount according to the paid amount. Ministry determines the processes and principals of the discount amount in interest and commission according to the paid amount.
When the creditor gives the loan provided that a sales agreement will be done with a specific seller or supplier or a specific commodity or service will be bought, the creditor and the seller or supplier are jointly and successively responsible to the consumer when the commodity or service is not delivered on time or not performed.
Binding the payments to a valuable paper or taking the loan under a warrant by accepting it as a valuable paper by the creditor is prohibited. In spite of this prohibition if a valuable paper will be asked from the consumer, the consumer has the right of taking back this valuable paper from the creditor. Moreover, the creditor is responsible to compensate the damage caused by the endorsement of the valuable paper.
CREDIT CARDS
ARTICLE 10/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.16 - Enforcement m.38) Credits, that turn into cash loans after a commodity or service is bought with a credit card or that are used by withdrawing cash are also subject to the rules of article 10. However, about these credits, subparagraphs (a), (b), (h) and (ı) of second subclause of article 10 and rule of fourth subclause are not applied.
Seasonal bank statements delivered to the consumer by the creditor are under the heel of the payment schedule proposed in subparagraph (d) of second subclause of article 10. When the minimum amount stated in the seasonal bank statement is not paid, the consumer cannot be forced into a responsibility apart from the overdue interest specified in subparagraph (f) of article 10.
The creditor must inform the consumer about the interest increment thirty days before. The creditor cannot apply the interest increment retrospectively. The consumer will not be affected by the interest increment when the total debt is paid and credit is closed within at most sixty days after the notification date.
When the commodity or service is bought with credit card, seller or supplier cannot ask additional payments like commission or alike from the consumer.
Lodging Financing Contracts
ARTICLE 10/B.- (Annex: 5582 - 21.2.2007 / m.24) Lodging financing organizations must give general information to the consumers before the contract about credit or financial leasing operations and the Pre-Contractual Information Form that includes the terms of loan or financial leasing they propose to the consumer. Consumer is free to accept or reject the offer.
Scope of the general information to be given by the lodging financing organizations and standards of the Pre-Contractual Information Form is determined by the Ministry by receiving opinions of the related associations. A contract signed before one full working day has passed after Pre-Contractual Information Form is given to the consumer.
Lodging financing contracts must be prepared in written and one copy of this contract must be given to the consumer. Terms proposed in the contract signed between the parties cannot be changed against to the consumer within the contract period.
When the debtor falls into the default event, lodging financing organization is responsible to inform the debtor within five days after the default date with a registered and reply paid letter.
If lodging financing organization is reserved the right of asking for the total debt when installments are not made, this right can only be used when at least two successive payments are felt into the default event. However, the lodging financing organization needs to give an acceleration warning of at least one month to use this right.
Lodging financing organization is responsible to put the house on the market when it terminates the financial leasing contract to use the right of performing all of the debt, following the period given in the acceleration warning, in financial leasing operations. Lodging financing organization hires person or corporations who are authorized by the subparagraph (r) of first subclause of article 22 of Capital Market Law 2499 for evaluation of the house before the sales. The worth evaluated is informed to the consumer at least ten days before the sales. Lodging financing organization performs the sales as a prudential trader considering the worth evaluated. Consumer is responsible from the part of the lodging financing organization’s loss that exceeds the amount gained from the sales. If the amount gained from the sales exceeds the remained debt, the exceeded part is paid to the consumer. Articles 7, 25 and 31 of Financial Leasing Law 3226 are not applied to financial leasing operations for lodging financing.
Following the sales of the house and paying the exceeded part of the obtained amount to the consumer, the consumer or third parties holding the ownership, in the case of transferred ownership, are under the responsibility to unload the house. If the house is not unloaded, the owner of the house may use the enforcement act against the consumer or the third parties holding the ownership in the case of transferred ownership in accordance with articles 26 and 27 of Bankruptcy and Enforcement Law 2004.
If personal warrant is given as the financing warrant, lodging financing organization cannot ask the payments from the guarantor without asking the actual debtor and other warrants.
When performing the operations originated by the lodging financing defined in the first subclause of article 38/A of Capital Markets Law 2499, in the case that the creditor lodging financing organization gives the loan provided that a specific house is to be bought or a sales agreement is to be made with a specific seller, the seller and the lodging financing organization is successively responsible to the consumer with the amount of the loan made available when the house is never delivered or not delivered on time. Even the loans given by lodging financing organizations are transferred to mortgage financing organizations, lodging financing funds or security warrant pools with mortgage warrants, the responsibility of the creditor lodging financing organization continues. Organization that takes over the loan is not liable within the scope of this article.
Binding the payments to a valuable paper or taking the loan under a warrant by accepting it as a valuable paper by the lodging financing organization is prohibited. In spite of this prohibition if a valuable paper will be asked from the consumer, the consumer has the right of taking back this valuable paper from the lodging financing organization. Moreover, the lodging financing organization is responsible to compensate the damage caused by the endorsement of the valuable paper.
Installment payments in the loans and rentals in financial leasing operations that exceed the capital are deemed as interest within the scope of this article.
By specified in the contract, interest rate used in loans for lodging financing and financial leasing operations can be determined as fixed, variable or by considering the both methods for the same loan. If the rate is determined as fixed, the rate specified in the contract at the beginning cannot be changed without the consents of both parties. If the rate is determined as variable, the rate specified in the contract at the beginning can be changed based on an index specified in the contract that is commonly used and accepted domestically and internationally and provided that the seasonal installment amount must not exceed the maximum seasonal installment amount that will be specified in the contract at the beginning. In the case that the rates are specified as variables, the consumers must be informed about the possible effects of this method. Reference interests and indices that can be used with these purposes are determined by Central Bank of Turkey, and processes and principals about informing the consumers are determined by the Ministry.
Consumer can pay the total debt amount to lodging financing organization aforetime and can pay one or more installments before their terms. In both cases the lodging financing organization is responsible to make a discount in the interest for the installments paid before their terms. When calculating the required interest discount according to the paid amount and loan’s annual cost rate to the consumer, the regulation rules determined by the Ministry are applied.
When the interest rate is determined as fixed and one or more installments are paid before their terms, lodging financing organization may ask for an early payment fee from the consumer, and this should be mentioned in the contract. Early payment fee is calculated by the required interest discount and it cannot exceed two percent of the amount that is paid early to lodging financing organization. When the rates are determined as variables, early payment fee cannot be asked from the consumers.
Below considerations must be included in the lodging financing contracts at the minimum:
a) Loan amount for lodging loans, total rental for financing leasing contracts,
b) Information about the house on which mortgage is established for loan contracts and the house subject to financial leasing for financial leasing contracts,
c) Annual interest rate and annual cost rate (Annual interest rate and annual cost rate for variable interest contracts are calculated separately for beginning and maximum interest rates),
d) Distribution of the total debt amount by capital, interest ant other charges (total debt amounts that are calculated by the beginning interest rate or rental and maximum interest rate or rental for variable interest contracts),
e) Calculation method of the change in the index, interest rate or rentals for variable interest contracts,
f) Payment schedule prepared seasonally for the first year and annual for the remaining years, including paid capital, paid interest, other charges, remaining capital, installments or rentals for the related periods (two separate payment schedules including beginning and maximum interest rates for variable interest contracts.),
g) Installment and rental payment count, payment dates, alternative payment dates when the actual date is a public holiday, first and last payment dates,
h) Warrants to be asked,
i) In case of the default event, overdue interest rate not exceeding the thirty percent of contractual interest rate (current rate for variable interest contracts) for loan contracts, overdue interest rate to be applied for financial leasing contracts,
j) Legal consequences of a debtor when in default event,
k) Terms about early payments of loan installments or rentals and principals for calculating the early payment fee, if available, for fixed interest contracts,
l) When the loan or rental is made available in a foreign currency, terms about the date of the rate of exchange that will be used in calculating the installments, rentals and total loan amount,
m) Conditions that require worth evaluation in the house subject to the contract and bodies that can perform this evaluation,
n) Insurance information, if available, of the house subject to the contract.
Distribution of the payments and remaining debt amount as they appear in subparagraph (d) of subclause 15 are included in the seasonal payment receipts to be sent to the consumer.
Person associates of housing cooperatives are deemed as consumers when applying this article.
PERIODICALS
ARTICLE 11 – Consumers subscribed to periodicals may terminate their subscriptions unilaterally in the case of behaviors contrary to the conditions about price and qualification stated in the subscription contract by a written request to the responsible person that has performed the subscription activities or to the publishing organization. Publisher is responsible to pay back the remaining subscription amount without any deduction within 15 days.
Request of the consumer to terminate the subscription comes into force after 15 days for daily issues, 1 month for weekly issues and 3 months for monthly issues from the date that the notification is received by the seller.
For longer term issues, it will come into force on the first issue after the notification.
(Annex subparagraph: 4226 - 15.1.1997) Campaigns arranged by periodicals organizations committing to give a secondary product besides the periodical by means of ticket, coupon, participation number, game, prize draw, etc. (no matter the purpose and format is) cannot commit or distribute no commodity or service apart from the cultural products like book, journal, encyclopedia, poster, flag, audio or visual magnetic tape or optical disk that are not contrary to the purposes of periodicals publishing. In any case, market value of this commodity or service cannot exceed 50% of the total value that a consumer pays to buy the periodical during the campaign period and the period of these campaigns cannot exceed 60 days. A part of the value of commodity or service subject to campaign being paid by the consumer is not an obstruction to deem this commodity or service as a secondary product.
(Annex subparagraph: 4226 - 15.1.1997) During the campaign, the sale price of the periodical cannot be increased due to the increase in the cost caused by the commodity or service committed to be given as a secondary product. Commodity or service cannot be divided for commitment and distribution, and integral or complementary parts of these commodity or service cannot be subjected to another campaign. Operations regarding to each commodity or service committed to be given as a secondary product are deemed as an independent campaign when applying this law.
ARTICLE 11.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.17 - Enforcement m.38) Campaigns arranged by periodicals organizations committing to give a secondary product and/or service besides the periodical by means of ticket, coupon, participation number, game, prize draw, etc. (no matter the purpose and format is) cannot commit or distribute no commodity or service apart from the cultural products like book, journal, encyclopedia, poster, flag, audio or visual magnetic tape or optical disk that are not contrary to the purposes of periodicals publishing. When arranging a campaign with this purpose, it cannot exceed sixty days. Consumers cannot be asked to pay a part of the commodity or service that is subject to a campaign.
Periodical publishing organization must announce the program about deliverance and performance of the commodity or service subject to campaign throughout Turkey in its advertisements or announcements about the campaign and it must fulfill the deliverance and performance of the commodity or service subject to campaign within thirty days after the campaign ends.
During the campaign, the sale price of the periodical cannot be increased due to the increase in the cost caused by the commodity or service committed to be given as a secondary product. Commodity or service cannot be divided for commitment and distribution, and integral or complementary parts of these commodity or service cannot be subjected to another campaign. Operations regarding to each commodity or service committed to be given as a secondary product are deemed as an independent campaign when applying this law.
Campaigns that are not arranged by the periodicals publishing organizations but correlated directly or indirectly with a periodical are also subject to these rules.
SUBSCRIPTION CONTRACTS
ARTICLE 11/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.18 - Enforcement m.38) Consumers being one of the parties in all kinds of subscription contracts may terminate their subscription unilaterally by notifying the seller in written.
Seller is responsible to fulfill this request within at most seven days after the notification is received.
Request of the consumer to terminate the subscription comes into force after fifteen days for daily issues, one month for weekly issues and three months for monthly issues from the date that the notification is received by the seller. For longer term issues, it will come into force on the first issue after the notification.
Publisher is responsible to pay back the remaining subscription amount without any deduction within fifteen days.
LABEL
ARTICLE 12 – It is obliged to put a label on the commodities subject to trade and retail sales or on their packaging or containers that is easy to see and read including information about their origin, type and price and in the cases that a label cannot be put, lists covering these information must be posted to suitable places. Lists showing the tariff and prices of services are posted by preparing according to the first subclause.
Ministry prepares a regulation about the format, content, processes and principals of label and tariff lists.
Municipalities are in charge of executing the operations about the implementation and pursuing of these article rules.
PRICE LABEL
ARTICLE 12.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.19 - Enforcement m.38) It is obliged to put a label on the commodities subject to retail sales or on their packaging or containers that is easy to see and read including information about their prices including all taxes, place of production and distinctive properties price and in the cases that a label cannot be put, lists covering these information must be posted to suitable places.
Lists showing the tariff and prices of services are posted by preparing according to the first subclause.
If there is a difference between the price stated in the label, price and tariff lists and the price read in cash register, the sales are performed with the price in favor of the consumer.
It is obliged to sell the commodity or services above the price determined by the cabinet, public organizations or professional bodies that are partakes of public organizations.
Ministry prepares a regulation about the format, content, processes and principals of label and tariff lists. Ministry and municipalities are separately in charge of executing the operations about the implementation and pursuing of these article rules.
CERTIFICATE OF WARRANTY
ARTICLE 13 – Importer or manufacturer companies need to prepare a certificate of warranty for the industrial commodities they import or manufacture
.
Responsibility of deliverance of the certificate of warranty to the consumer after its maturation belongs to the seller, retailer, agent or representatives from where the consumer has purchased the commodity. Warranty period starts at the date if deliverance of the commodity and it is minimum one year. Certificates of warrant must include the date and issue number of the invoice of commodity sold and also the banderol and serial number.
Seller is responsible to repair, without any fee like workmanship cost, price of the replaced part or any other under a name, the commodity when it is broken due to material, workmanship and installation defects within the warranty period for the commodities in the scope of warranties.
Consumer may ask to replace the commodity for free when the consumer cannot benefit from the commodity due to its frequent defects or when the maximum period for repair is exceeded. Seller cannot reject this request.
Seller, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer and manufacturer are jointly and successively responsible to this request of consumer.
Defects due to usage of the commodity by the consumer contrary to the usage manual are not in the scope of second and third subclause rules.
Ministry, with Industry of Turkish Standards, are in charge of determining and announcing the maximum periods to repair the commodity defects and the commodities that have to be sold with certificates of warranty.
ARTICLE 13.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.20 - Enforcement m.38) Manufacturer or importers need to prepare a certificate of warranty approved by the Ministry for the industrial commodities that they import or produce. Seller, retailer or agent is responsible to give the certificate of warranty that includes invoice date and number regarding to the commodity after its maturation. Warranty period starts at the date if deliverance of the commodity and it is minimum two years. However, warranty conditions of some commodities due to their properties may be determined by another scale unit by the Ministry.
Seller is responsible to repair, without any fee like workmanship cost, price of the replaced part or any other under a name, the commodity when it is broken within the warranty period for the commodities in the scope of warranties.
If the consumer used the right of repair, in the cases that the commodity cannot be benefited due to its frequent defects or the maximum period for its repair is exceeded or it is understood that its repair cannot be done, the consumer may use the other optional choices included in article 4. Seller cannot reject this request. Seller, retailer, agent, manufacturer-producer and importer are successively responsible when this request of consumer cannot be fulfilled.
Defects due to usage of the commodity by the consumer contrary to the usage manual are not in the scope of second and third subclause rules.
Ministry, by having the opinions of Industry of Turkish Standards, are in charge of determining and announcing the maximum periods to repair the commodity defects and the commodities that have to be sold with certificates of warranty.
INTRODUCTORY AND USAGE MANUAL
ARTICLE 14 – It is obliged to sell the industrial commodities produced in Turkey with their introductory and usage manuals showing the maintenance, repair and usage in Turkish and the imported industrial commodities with the introductory and usage manuals showing the maintenance, repair and usage translated to Turkish. Ministry, with the Industry of Turkish Standards, is in charge of determining the industrial commodities that need to be sold with introductory and usage manuals.
ARTICLE 14.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.21 - Enforcement m.38) It is obliged to sell the industrial commodities that are imported or produced domestically with a manual in Turkish about their introduction, usage, maintenance and simple repair and, when needed, with a label including international symbol and signs.
Ministry, by having the opinion of Industry of Turkish Standards, is in charge of determining and announcing the industry commodities that have to be sold with introductory and usage manual and label and the minimum items that need to be included in these documents.
SERVICE UTILITIES
ARTICLE 15 – Importers or manufacturers have to establish stations for the industrial commodities they sell where they perform maintenance, repair and service utilities within the lifespan of the commodity determined by the Ministry and have to have sufficient technician staff available and spare part stock.
Industry of Turkish Standards and the Ministry are jointly responsible from determination and announcement of processes and principals about the establishment and management of service stations and the commodities for which service stations are needed to be established.
AFTER SALES SERVICES
ARTICLE 15.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.22 - Enforcement m.38) Manufacturers or importers have to provide maintenance and repair services for the industrial commodities they sell, produce or import by having sufficient technical staff and spare part stock available within the lifespan of the industrial commodity determined and announced by the Ministry.
Spare part stock amount that needs to be available by manufacturer or importer will be specified by the Ministry.
When commercial activities of the importer end in some ways, the new importer of the commodity will continue to repair and maintenance services during the lifespan of the commodity.
Industry of Turkish Standards and the Ministry are jointly responsible from determination and announcement of processes and principals about the establishment and management of service stations and the commodities for which service stations are needed to be established.
If an industrial breaks down after the expiration of the warranty period, the product must be repaired within the maximum repair period specified by the Ministry.
COMMERCIAL ADVERTISEMENTS AND THE TOP MODEL YANN TIERSENN
ARTICLE 16 – Commercial ads and written announcements must be consistent with laws and general moral, honesty and truthfulness. Advertisements and announcements that cheat the consumer, are specious and take advantage of lack of knowledge, endanger the security of life and property of the consumer, encourage violence acts and committing crimes, injure public’s health, take advantage of patients, elders, children and disabled people cannot be made.
ARTICLE 16.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.23 - Enforcement m.38) Commercial advertisements and announcements must be in accord with principals specified by Board of Advertisement, public morality, public order, personal rights and they must be decent and right.
Advertisements and announcements and implied advertisement that cheat the consumer, are specious and take advantage of lack of knowledge, endanger the security of life and property of the consumer, encourage violence acts and committing crimes, injure public’s health, take advantage of patients, elders, children and disabled people cannot be made.
There can be comparable advertisements with the competitor commodities and services for the same purposes and fulfilling the same needs.
Advertisement giver is responsible to prove the concrete claims included in the commercial advertisement or announcement.
Advertisement givers, advertisers and closed channel organizations are responsible to aim the rules of this article.
BOARD OF ADVERTISEMENT
ARTICLE 17 – A “Board of Advertisement” has been founded to make suggestions to the Ministry about determining the principals required to be in accord with in commercial advertisements and announcements, reviewing the commercial advertisements and announcements within the scope of these principals and according to the results of these reviews, punishing the ones that act contrary to rules of article 16, stop those advertisements or announcements and/or correcting by the same way.
Board of Advertisement, besides the country conditions, takes universally accepted definitions and rules into consideration when determining the principals that must be complied in advertisements and announcements.
Board of Advertisement, executed by a General Manager who will be assigned by the Minister, includes the below 17 members;
a) a member that will be appointed by the Ministry among the people who is a college graduate and has 10 years experience of one or more of economy, finance, law, and management,
b) a member that will be appointed by the Ministry of Justice who works as a judge in administrative positions in this ministry,
c) a member that will be appointed by Turkish Radio and Television association,
d) a member that will be selected among university lecturers specialized in advertisement by Board of Higher Education,
e) a member that will be appointed by Turkish Medical Association Central Council,
f) a member that will be appointed by Union of Bars of Turkey,
g) a member that will be appointed by Turkish Union of Chambers and Exchange Commodities,
h) a member that will be selected among Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir Journalist Associations,
i) a member that will be selected by Board of Advertisers unions or their supervisor associations,
j) a member that will be selected among the consumer organization representatives participated in Consumer Council by the Council,
k) a member that will be appointed by Union of Chambers of Agriculture of Turkey,
l) a member that will be appointed by Turkey Merchants and Craftsmen Confederation,
m) a member from Institute of Turkish Standards,
n) a member from Directorate of Religious Affairs,
o) a member from the Union of Chambers of Engineers,
p) two members from Workers Confederation,
Duty period of board members is three years. Ones whose period is ended can be appointed or selected again. When memberships become free for any reason, a new appointment or election will be made in one month within the principals of third subclause.
Board gets together at least once a month or every time needed by the invite of the President.
Board meets by having at least nine members including the President and gives decisions by the majority of participants of the meeting.
Board may form private expertise commissions to be on duty permanently or temporarily whenever needed. Public staff that the Board decides to appoint to these commissions are appointed by the related organizations.
Attendance fee that will be given to board members and to the public officials of private expertise commission members and to the board members who are not public officials is determined by the Ministry.
Secretariat services of the board are performed by the Ministry.
Duties of the Board of Advertisement, processes and principals of the organization and work, and the form of secretariat services are determined by a regulation prepared by the Ministry.
ARTICLE 17.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.24 - Enforcement m.38) A Board of Advertisement is established to determine the principals required to be in accord with in commercial advertisements and announcements, review the commercial advertisements and announcements within the scope of these principals and according to the results of these reviews, precautionary disruption and/or disruption and/or correction in the same way and/or fining the advertisements and announcements contrary to the rules of article 16. Decisions of Board of Advertisement are applied by the Ministry.
Board of Advertisement, besides the country conditions, takes universally accepted definitions and rules about advertisement into consideration when determining the principals that must be complied in advertisements and announcements.
Board of Advertisement, executed by a General Manager who will be assigned by the Minister, includes the below 25 members;
a) a member that will be appointed by the Ministry among the related Vice Presidents,
b) a member that will be appointed by the Ministry of Justice who works as a judge in administrative positions in this ministry,
c) a member that will be appointed by Turkish Radio and Television association and specialized in advertisement,
d) a member that will be selected among university lecturers specialized in advertisement by Board of Higher Education,
e) a doctor member that will be appointed by Turkish Medical Association Central Council,
f) a member that will be appointed by Union of Bars of Turkey,
g) a member that will be appointed by Turkish Union of Chambers and Exchange Commodities,
h) a member that will be selected among all Journalist Associations,
i) a member that will be selected by advertiser unions or their supervisor associations,
j) a member that will be selected among the consumer organization representatives participated in Consumer Council by the Council or that will be appointed by the supervisor associations,
k) a member that will be appointed by Union of Chambers of Agriculture of Turkey,
l) a member that will be appointed by Turkey Merchants and Craftsmen Confederation,
m) a member from Institute of Turkish Standards,
n) a member from Directorate of Religious Affairs,
o) a member from the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects,
p) a member from the Confederation of Workers' Trade Unions
r) a member from the Confederation of Public Officials' Trade Unions
s) a member that will be appointed by Union of Chambers of Certified Public Accountants and Union of Chambers of Financial Consultants,
t) a member that will be selected among Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir Metropolitan Municipality,
u) a member from the Union of Turkish Pharmacists,
v) a member from the Union of Turkish Dentists,
y) (Annex: 5179 - 27.5.2004 / m.34) two members from each of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and Ministry of Health,
Duty period of board members is three years. Ones whose period is ended can be appointed or selected again. When memberships become free for any reason, a new appointment or election will be made in one month within the principals of third subclause.
Board gets together at least once a month or every time needed by the invite of the President.
Board meets by having at least fourteen members including the President and gives decisions by the majority of participants of the meeting.
Board may form private expertise commissions to be on duty permanently or temporarily whenever needed. Public staff that the Board decides to appoint to these commissions are appointed by the related organizations.
Attendance fee that will be given to board members and to the public officials of private expertise commission members and to the board members who are not public officials is determined by the Ministry having the opinions of the Ministry of Finance.
Secretariat services of the board are performed by the Ministry.
Decisions of Board of Advertisements are declared by Chairmanship of Board of Advertisements to protect the economical benefits and inform and clarify the consumers.
Duties of the Board of Advertisement, processes and principals of the organization and work, and the form of secretariat services are determined by a regulation prepared by the Ministry.
HAZARDOUS AND DANGEROUS COMMODITY AND SERVICES
ARTICLE 18 – In the case that the commodities and services that are provided to the consumer are hazardous and dangerous to personal and environmental health, descriptive information and warnings about this topic are put and written onto these commodities or their usage manuals which can be easily seen and read, to make these commodities safely used. Ministry, with Institute of Turkish Standards, is in charge of determining and announcing the commodities or services that need to carry the descriptive information and warnings and the format of these information and warnings.
ARTICLE 18.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.25 - Enforcement m.38) In the case that the commodities and services that are provided to the consumer are hazardous and dangerous to personal physical and mental health and environmental health, descriptive information and warnings about this topic are put and written onto these commodities or their usage manuals which can be easily seen and read, to make these commodities safely used.
Ministry, with Institute of Turkish Standards, is in charge of determining and announcing the commodities or services that need to carry the descriptive information and warnings and the format of these information and warnings.
SERVICE INSPECTION
ARTICLE 19.- (Alternate article and its title: 4703 - 29.6.2001 / m.15 – Enforcement m.16) Services provided to consumers should not harm the security of life and property and environment and must comply with the related legislation or standard, or technical rules in the case the legislation or standards do not exist. Ministry is in charge of inspecting or having some bodies to inspect according to these principals.
COMMODITY AND SERVICE INSPECTION
ARTICLE 19.- (Alternate article and its title: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.26 - Enforcement m.38) Commodity and services provided to consumers must comply with technical regulation that needs to be obligatory to comply, including the standards came into force compulsively by publishing in Official Gazette by the related ministries.
Related Ministries are in charge of inspecting or have some bodies to inspect according to these principals. Processes and principals about commodity and service inspection are separately determined and announced by each related Ministry.
CONSUMER EDUCATION
ARTICLE 20 – Required items are added to the curriculum of the schools from every level about consumer education by the Ministry of Education.
Processes and principals about publishing books, journals and brochures to educate and enlighten the consumers and broadcasting programs on radios and televisions to raise the awareness of the consumers are determined and announced by the Ministry with the suggestion of Consumer Council.
ARTICLE 20.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.27 - Enforcement m.38) Required items are added to the curriculum of the formal and informal educational institutions about consumer education by the Ministry of Education.
Processes and principals about broadcasting programs on radios and TVs to raise the awareness of the consumers are determined and announced by the Ministry with the suggestion of Consumer Council.
THIRD PART
CONSUMER ORGANIZATIONS
CONSUMER COUNCIL
A “Consumer Council" under the coordinatorship of the Ministry is established to research the precautions required to protect consumers` problems, needs and benefits, and to forward the precautions to be taken to solve the problems in favor of the consumer and the opinions about the precautions to be taken for the implementation of this Law to the related authorities. ARTICLE 21 - (Alternate 1. subclause: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.28 - Enforcement m.38) A “Consumer Council" under the coordinatorship of the Ministry is established to research the precautions required to protect consumers` problems, needs and benefits, and to forward the precautions to be taken to solve the problems in the direction of universal consumer rights and the opinions about the precautions to be taken for the implementation of this Law to the related authorities to be considered primarily.
Consumer Council consists of Ministries of Justice, Internal Affairs, Finance, Education, Health, Communications, Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tourism and Environment, State Planning Organization, Undersecretariat of Treasure, Undersecretariat of Foreign Trade, State Institute of Statistics, Directorate of Institute of Turkish Standards, National Productivity Centre, Directorate of Religious Affairs, Turkish Municipal Work Union, Confederation of Workers` Trade Union, Union of National Cooperatives, Higher Education Board, Union of Bars of Turkey, Union of Chambers of Architects and Engineers, Turkish Pharmacists Union, Union of Turkish Medical Doctors, Confederation of Merchants and Craftsmen, Turkish Union of Chambers and Exchange Commodities, Union of Chambers of Agriculture, National Quality Council, Ahi Research and Culture Foundation and Consumer Organizations under the presidency of the Minister or a Ministry official appointed by the Ministry. (Alternate 2. subclause: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.28 - Enforcement m.38) Consumer Council consists of Ministries of Justice, Internal Affairs, Finance, Education, Health, Communications, Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Industry and Trade, Tourism and Environment, State Planning Organization, Undersecretariat of Treasure, Undersecretariat of Foreign Trade, Turkish Patent Institute, State Institute of Statistics, Directorate of Institute of Turkish Standards, Competition Authority, Radio and Television Supreme Board, Energy Market Regulatory Authority, Telecommunications Institution, Turkish Accreditation Agency, National Productivity Centre, Directorate of Religious Affairs, Metropolitan municipalities, Turkish Municipal Work Union on behalf of county municipalities, Confederation of Workers` Trade Union, Confederation of Officials` Trade Union, Confederation of Employer Unions of Turkey, Union of National Cooperatives, Higher Education Board, Union of Bars of Turkey, Union of Chambers of Certified Public Accountants and Union of Chambers of Financial Consultants, Union of Chambers of Architects and Engineers, Turkish Pharmacists Union, Union of Turkish Medical Doctors, Union of Turkish Dentists, Union of Turkish Veterinarians, Confederation of Merchants and Craftsmen, Turkish Union of Chambers and Exchange Commodities, Union of Banks, Union of Travel Agencies, Turkey Hotelier Union, Union of Chambers of Agriculture, Central Union of Consumer Cooperatives, Ahi Research and Culture Foundation and Consumer Organizations under the presidency of the Minister or a Ministry official appointed by the Ministry.
Quantity and qualifications of the representatives of organization and institutions constituting consumer council and minimum member count that it needs to have and representative count that will be sent to Consumer Council are determined by the Ministry. However, the count of the representatives come from public bodies cannot be more than 50% of total member count of the consumer council. Consumer Council gathers at least once a year.
Working processes and principals of Consumer Council and other considerations are regulated with a regulation prepared by the Ministry.
CONSUMER PROBLEMS ARBITRATOR COMMITTEE
ARTICLE 22 – Ministry is in charge of forming at least one "consumer problems arbitrator committee" in coordination with municipalities for the purpose of resolution of the disputes between consumers and sellers at county and city centers. Consumer problems arbitrator committee, that is headed by Ministry of Industry and Trade County Manager or a public official appointed by it, includes 5 members including the president one of which is a member appointed by the mayor among specialized municipality staff, a member appointed from bar’s member, a member appointed by chamber of trade and industry and chambers of craftsmen and a member selected by consumer organizations. The member that will be appointed by the chamber of trade and industry or chamber of trade and chambers of merchants and craftsmen where they established separately, is appointed by the chamber according to whether the seller part of the dispute in question is a trader or merchant and craftsmen or not.
In the counties and cities where province organizations are not available, the presidency of the arbitrator committee is executed by the civilian chief or a public official that will be appointed by it.
At the places where consumer problems arbitrator committee cannot be formed missing members are filled with town council temporarily.
Decisions that will given by the consumer problems arbitrator committee can be used as evidences in consumer courts. When the worth of commodity or service subject to dispute does not exceed 292,040,658.- (two hundred ninety two million forty thousand six hundred fifty eight) Turkish Liras (*), without a decision given by these committees consumer courts cannot accept applications. This monetary limit is re-determined within the scope of the process shown in the last subclause of article 8 each year.
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(*) Monetary limit stated in 4. subclause of article 22 was determined and placed into the text as 292,040,658.- (two hundred ninety two million forty thousand six hundred fifty eight) Turkish Liras valid from 1.1.2003 with the bulletin TRKGM - 2002/7 of Ministry of Industry published in the official gazette 24963 dated 12.14.2002.
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Disputes about the considerations in article 25 bound to criminal sanctions are out of the scope of duty and authorization of consumer problems arbitrator committee. Establishment, working processes and principals of consumer problems arbitrator council and other considerations are regulated with a regulation prepared by the Ministry.
ARTICLE 22.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.29 - Enforcement m.38) Ministry is in charge of forming at least one consumer problems arbitrator committee for the purpose of resolution of the disputes caused by the implementation of this Law at county and city centers.
Consumer problems arbitrator committee, that is headed by Ministry of Industry and Trade County Manager or a public official appointed by it, includes five members including the president one of which is a member appointed by the mayor among specialized municipality staff, a member appointed from bar’s member, a member appointed by chamber of trade and industry and chambers of craftsmen and a member selected by consumer organizations. The member that will be appointed by the chamber of trade and industry or chamber of trade and chambers of merchants and craftsmen where they established separately, is appointed by the chamber according to whether the seller part of the dispute in question is a trader or merchant and craftsmen or not.
In the counties and cities where province organizations are not available, the presidency of the arbitrator committee is executed by the civilian chief or a public official that will be appointed by it. At the places where a consumer organization does not exit, consumers are represented with consumer cooperatives. At the places where consumer problems arbitrator committee cannot be formed missing members are filled with town council temporarily.
For the preparation of files that will be a base for workings and decisions of the committee and presentation of the report about the dispute, a reporter is appointed in consumer problems arbitration committees.
For disputes having worth under 792,12 YTL (*), application to consumer problems arbitrator committee is mandatory. Decisions that will be given by the committee for these kinds of disputes bind the parties. These decisions are fulfilled according to the rules about performing the decisions of Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law. Parties may object to these conclusions within fifteen days to the consumer court. Objection does not stop the execution of the consumer problems arbitrator committee conclusion. However, the judge, when requested, can precautionally stop the execution of the conclusion of consumer problems arbitrator committee. Judgment that consumer court will give is definitive about the objection against to consumer problems arbitrator committee conclusions.
The conclusions made by consumer problems arbitrator committees for the disputes having worth of 792,12 YTL (*) or above may be used as evidences in consumer courts. Monetary limits, regarding to conclusions being binding or evidence, increase by the annual average price increment rate occurred in Wholesale Price Index of State Institute of Statistics by the end of October for each year. This situation is announced in the Official Gazette by the Ministry in December of each year.
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(*) Monetary value of 724,99 YTL stated in article 22 was changed and put onto the text since 1.1.2007 and in accordance with the rule of subparagraph (a) of article 1 of Bulletin published in Official Gazette 26367 dated 12.5.2006.
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All disputes except from the considerations in article 25 bound to criminal sanctions are in the scope of duty and authorization of consumer problems arbitrator committee.
Processes and principals about the payment of attendance fee given to the president and members of Consumer Problems Arbitrator Committee and reporters are, having the opinion of Ministry of Finance, determined by the Ministry as the monthly amount not exceeding the amount found by multiplying the indicator number 2000 with the public official monthly coefficient.
Establishment, working processes and principals of consumer problems arbitrator council and other considerations are regulated with a regulation prepared by the Ministry.
FOURTH PART
RULES REGARDING TO JURISDICTION AND PUNISHMENT
CONSUMER COURTS
ARTICLE 23 – All kinds of conflicts about implementation of this law are handled in consumer courts.
Judgment environment of consumer courts are specified by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors.
Consumers, consumer organizations and court cases opened by the Ministry are exempt from all kinds of illustration and charges. Cases handled in Consumer Courts are executed in accordance with the rules of fourth section, seventh chapter of Civil Procedure Code.
ARTICLE 23.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.30 - Enforcement m.38) All kinds of conflicts about implementation of this law are handled in consumer courts. Judgment environment of consumer courts are specified by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors.
Consumers, consumer organizations and court cases opened by the Ministry are exempt from all kinds of illustration and charges. Expert fees in court cases filed by consumer organizations are paid by the Ministry from the “proposed allowance in budget” according to article 29 (Alternate clause:5217 - 14.7.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement m.32/2) If the case results against the defendant, the expert fee is taken from the defendant in accordance with the rules of Law of Collection Process of Public Receivables numbered as 6183 and is recorded as “income for the budget" according to the principals regulated in article 29 (Alternate clause:5217 - 14.7.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement m.32/2) Cases handled in Consumer Courts are executed in accordance with the rules of fourth section, seventh chapter of Civil Procedure Code.
Consumer court cases also can be filed at the court located at the consumer’s domicile.
In the cases where there are no individual consumer problems but issues that generally apply to the consumers, the Ministry and consumer organizations can file a court case for the purpose of abolishing the issue that is against to law due to this Law’s violation.
Consumer courts may conclude in precautionary stop of this violation when required. Precautionary conclusions that are approved by the Consumer Court are announced immediately in a local newspaper at the place where the case has been filed and in one of the newspapers published in the country by a Press Release organization, cost of which will be taken from the party who will be found in the wrong and to be recorded as "income for the budget" according to the principals regulated in article 29 (Alternate clause:5217 - 14.7.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement m.32/2)
Consumer court conclusions to abolish the situation against to the law are also announced immediately, cost of which will be taken from the defendant.
SUSPENDING THE PRODUCTION, SALES AND RECALLING THE COMMODITY
ARTICLE 24 – If a product line put in the market is defective, the Ministry or consumer organizations may file a court case for the purpose of suspending the production and selling of the defective product line and recalling it from the bodies that retain it for selling purposes. If the court concludes to recall the defective commodities, it also concludes whether the defective commodity and the commodities for the qualification of the defect will be returned to the seller or not. However, unless all kinds of expenses consumed in recalling the commodities are paid by the person for whom the case is resulted against, the commodities will not be given back.
Recourse cases, that will be filed by the third parties who obtained the commodities subject to the case for the purpose of sales, are also handled in the court that executes the actual case.
Consumers reserve the right of filing court cases separately due to the material and spiritual damages caused by the defective commodities they buy
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ARTICLE 24.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.31 - Enforcement m.38) – If a product line put in the market is defective, the Ministry, consumers or consumer organizations may file a court case for the purpose of suspending the production and selling of the defective product line and recalling it from the bodies that retain it for selling purposes.
When the court determines a product line to be defective, the sales of this commodity abolished temporarily. Producer-Manufacturer and/or import company is warned to abolish the defect of the commodity within at most three months after the notification date of court conclusion. If the defect cannot be abolished, the commodity is recalled or made to be recalled by the producer-manufacturer and/or 7 importers. Commodities recalled are partially or fully abolished or made abolished according to their risks.
If a product line to be sold has defects that are dangerous to consumer’s safety, rules about Law of Preparation and Implementation of Technical Legislation about Commodities numbered as 4703 are reserved.
Consumers reserve the right of filing court cases separately due to the material and spiritual damages caused by the defective commodities they buy.
If a defective product line subjected to the rules of sixth subclause of article 4 is put on the market, then the rules of this article does not apply.
FALSE PRETENCED COMMODITIES
ARTICLE 24/A.- (Annex: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.32 - Enforcement m.38) Production, marketing, import and export of commodities that are dangerous to consumers` health and safety since they are confused with food products by the consumers due to their different look caused by their shape, smell, appearance, packaging, label, volume or sizes although these commodities are not food products.
Acts of law 4703 regarding to Preparation and Implementation of Technical Legislation about Products are applied to these products.
Consumers reserve the right of filing court cases separately due to the material and spiritual damages caused by the defective commodities they buy.
PENAL RULES
ARTICLE 25.- Bodies behaving against to seventh subclause of article 4, first subclause of article 5, third subclause of article 3, third subclause of article 7, first subclause of article 9, first subclause of article 10 and first and second subclauses of article 12 are fined with 5.000.000.- Turkish Liras .
Bodies behaving against to second subclause of article 8, first and second subclause of article 13, first subclause of article 14, first subclause of article 15, second subclause of article 27 are fined with 10.000.000.- Turkish Liras.
Bodies behaving against to article 16 are fined with 200.000.000.- Turkish Liras. If being against to article 16 is performed by written, oral, visual, etc. tools broadcasted around the country, then ten times of the fine is applied. Moreover, the Ministry asks to the related bodies to stop and/or correct, in the same way, the commercial advertisement or announcement. If this situation continues in spite of this request, the Ministry may apply to the consumer court with the request of stopping and/or correcting, in the same way, the commercial advertisement or announcement.
Bodies behaving against to article 18 and 19 are fined with 100,000,000.- Turkish Liras. Moreover, in the cases that the commodity manufactured against to its obligatory standards is found to be directly related to consumer`s life and property security and health and it is impossible to adapt it to its standard, Consumer Court may conclude to shut down the office to prevent the production and sales and to confiscate the commodity or recall it from the bodies who retain it to consume or use. In the cases that this subclause is applied, summaries of the conclusion about shutting the office that was given and finalized are posted to an apparent place of the office that was shut down for the shut down period in large fonts. Moreover, conclusion summary is informed to Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and published in one or two newspapers with an edition of more than hundred thousand and published in Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir or in a local newspaper published at the crime scene, expenses of which are taken from the offenders.
(Annex 5. subparagraph: 4226 - 15.1.1997) Bodies behaving against to third and fourth subclause of article 11 are fined with 500.000.000.- Turkish Liras. If the conflict is performed by a periodical published around the country, then 20 times of the fine is applied. Ministry asks to the periodical publishing company to stop the campaign and all kinds of advertisements or announcements related to the campaign. If the conflict continues in spite of the request, a fine of 1.000.000.000 Turkish Liras is applied for each issue after the compulsion of stopping the advertisement and announcement was started and the Ministry is applied to consumer court with the request to stop the campaign and the advertisements and announcements about the campaign.
Fines specified in above subclauses will be doubled when the crime is repeated in the same year. Fines are increased at the beginning of each year in accordance with the rules of Annex article 2 of Turkish Penal Code.
Administrative fines related to the actions written in this Law do not prevent the implementation of punishments for these actions written in other laws.
ARTICLE 25.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.33 - Enforcement m.38) A fine of 78 YTL (*) is applied for each contract which is determined to be against to processes and principals specified by the Ministry in accordance with the seventh subclause if article 6.
A fine of 156 YTL (*) is applied to the bodies who are against to the liabilities specified in the seventh subclause of article 4, article 5, sixth subclause of article 6, article 6/A, processes and principals determined by the Ministry in accordance with article 6/B and 6/C, fifth subclause of article 7, article 9, article 9/A, article 10, article 10/A , (Annex clause:5582 - 21.2.2007 / m.25) “article 10/B,” second and fourth subclauses of article 11/A, and in articles 12, 13, 14, 15 and 27.
Bodies behaving against to the liabilities specified in the fourth and sixth subclauses of article 7 and article 8 are fined with 392 YTL (*).
Conflicts with processes and principals determined and announced by the Ministry in accordance with the second subclause of article 20 are fined with 784 YTL (*). If the conflict has been performed by radios and televisions broadcasting around the country, ten times of the fine is applied.
Producer-manufacturer and importer are fined with 1.568 YTL (*) and seller-supplier are fined with one fifth of this value when they act against article 18.
Bodies behaving against to the first subclause of article 19 are fined with 3.137 YTL (*).
Bodies behaving against to article 11 are fined with 7.844 YTL (*). If the conflict is performed by a periodical published around the country, then 20 times of the fine is applied. Ministry asks to the periodical publishing company to stop the campaign and all kinds of advertisements or announcements related to the campaign. If the conflict continues in spite of this request, a fine of 156.895 YTL (*) is applied for each issue-day after the compulsion of stopping the advertisement and announcement was started. Ministry applies to consumer court with the request to stop the campaign and the advertisements and announcements about the campaign.
Bodies behaving against to article 16 are punished with a precautionary stop until three months and/or stop and/or correction or a fine of 5.491 YTL (*). Board of advertisement may give these punishments together or separately according to qualification of the conflict. If being against to article 16 is performed by written, oral, visual, etc. tools broadcasted around the country, then ten times of the fine is applied.
Bodies behaving against to seventh and eighth subclauses of article seven, are fined with the worth of invoice of commodity or service subjected to campaign. If the campaign arranger refunds the money when the consumer leaves the campaign, then this punishment is not applied.
A period of one week is given to the bodies behaving against to article 7 to arrange a convenient campaign in accordance with the rules of article 7. If the conflict still continues on the expiration of this period, bodies behaving against this rule and the rules of article 24 and 24/A are fined with 78.447 YTL (*).
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(*) Monetary values stated in subclauses 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 10 of article 25 have been alternated and put onto the text valid from 1.1.2006 in accordance with the rule of article 1 of the bulletin published in Official Gazette 26032 dated 12.23.2005.
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Fines specified in above subclauses will be doubled when the crime is repeated in the same year. Fines are increased at the beginning of each year in accordance with the rules of Annex article 2 of Turkish Penal Code 765.
If fines are proposed in other laws about the actions written in this law, the higher fine is applied.
AUTHORIZATION, OBJECTION AND LIMITATION IN PUNISHMENTS
a) Punishments regulated in first subclause of article 25 proposed for the cases of conflicts to first and second subclauses of article 12 are executed by municipal board,
b) (Alternate: 4226 - 15.1.1997) Punishments stated in third and fifth subclauses of article 25 are executed by the Ministry,
c) Other punishments are fined by the administrative chief of that location. ARTICLE 26 - (Alternate 1. subclause: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.34 - Enforcement m.38) Punishments in first, fourth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth subclauses of article 25 are executed by the Ministry, punishments stated in its other subclauses are executed by the administrative chief of that location.
All kinds of fines regulated in this Law are administrative. Bodies can object to these fines to the authorized administrative court within at most seven days from the date of notification. Objection does not stop the execution of the punishment and it is concluded as soon as possible by reviewing the documents in the cases without any exigency. Conclusions given by the administrative court in return for the objection are definitive.
Fines executed according to article 25 are collected in accordance with the rules of the Law About Collection Method of Public Receivable.
Criminal limitation about executing these administrative fines regulated in this law is one year. Limitation period starts on the date on which the actions against to rules are performed.
If the conflicts are continuous or repeating, this period starts with the date on which the conflict ends or it has repeated lastly. If applied against to the conclusion judicially, the collection limitation is cut.
Punishments are informed to the professional organization, which the related person is a member of it, within seven days by the competent authority that is authorized to execute punishments.
FIFTH PART
VARIOUS RULES
INSPECTION
ARTICLE 27 – Ministry inspectors and controllers and staff that will be appointed by the Ministry and municipalities are authorized to perform inspections, investigations and researches at the places like factor, shop, store, trading house, warehouse, depot where all kinds of commodities are stored and/or sold or services are given.
It is obligatory to present all kinds of information and documents within the scope of this Law truly and give the approved original copies to the authorized person and corporations in charge.
LABORATORY
ARTICLE 28 – Ministry may establish laboratories to apply this Law or benefit from the laboratories that have already been established; and is in charge jointly with the related ministries to determine and announce about the minimum technical properties that must be available in the official and private laboratories that will make quality control.
Analysis of samples taken during the inspections performed by the Ministry can be made in official or private laboratories. If the analysis results are contrary to the standards, all the expenses about it are paid by the producer person or organization. These expenses are collected in accordance with the rules of Law About Collection Method of Public Receivables.
ARTICLE 28.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.35 - Enforcement m.38) Ministry can benefit from the established laboratories of official and private organizations to apply this Law excluding the analysis of medicine, medical product, cosmetic and food materials.
Analysis and test of samples taken during the inspections performed by the Ministry can be made in official or private laboratories. Test and analysis fees will be (Alternate clause: 5217 - 7.14.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement 32/2) paid from the "allowance" of article 29. If the results of these tests and analysis are contrary to the related standard or technical regulation, all expenses about this will be paid by the producer or importer. These expenses are collected in accordance with the rules of Law 6183 About Collection Method of Public Receivables. Check and tests fees which are collected, will be recorded as "income to budget” according to the principals regulated in article 29 (Alternate clause: 5217 - 14.7.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement m.32/2).
ALLOWANCE
ARTICLE 29 – Expenses and costs about the establishment and works of Consumer Council, consumer problems arbitrator committees and Board of Advertisement that have founded by this Law are paid by the allowance that will be allocated to Ministry’s budget. Payments of the capitals or, if the capital is increased, 2‰ of the exceeded part, of all partnerships in incorporated or limited company status that are to be established or have a capital of at least hundred million Turkish Liras or more, are collected in an account by the care of Central Bank of Turkey. Five percent of the money collected in this account is used by the organizations took part in the implementation of this Law, and ninety five percent is used by the "Competition Authority” founded by the Law 4054.
ARTICLE 29.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.36 - Enforcement m.38) Expenses related to establishment and works of consumer council, consumer problems arbitrator committee and Board of Advertisement, financial aids to consumer societies and their supervisor organizations, expenses of the Ministry about protecting the consumer, other expenses and additional payments to staff which will be determined by the Ministry of Industry and Trade with the convenient opinion of Ministry of Finance are paid via;
a) the allowance that will be put onto the budget of the Ministry,
b) Capitals of all partnerships in incorporated and limited company status that are to be established and in the cases of capital increments, ‰1 of the exceeded part.
Incomes stated in (b) section are collected in an account by the care of Central Bank of Turkey or its correspondent Turkish Republic Ziraat Bank. Sixty percent of the amount collected in this account is transferred to the Ministry of Industry and Trade Directorate of Central Accounting, forty percent is transferred to the Competition Authority at the end of each month.
Amounts transferred to the Directorate of Central Accounting are recorded as a special income to the budget and also as a special allowance to the current or to be opened layouts within the budget of Ministry of Industry and Trade.
A part of the amounts recorded as a special allowance to Ministry budget is used in supporting the projects including activities performed by consumer societies and their supervisor organizations independent from commercial, politic and administrative organizations. From this account, payments under the name of attendance fee and salary cannot be made to the bodies charged in management and inspection boards of consumer societies and their supervisor organizations. Other criteria for the consumer societies and their supervisor organizations that will take benefit from this account are regulated by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and Ministry of Finance.
In this way, Ministry of Finance is authorized to record the amounts that are not spent within the year from the amounts recorded as a special allowance, as special income and special allowance transferred to the following year.
ARTICLE 29.- (Alternate: 5217 - 14.7.2004 / m.7 - Enforcement m.32/2) Expenses related to the activities of Board of Advertisement, Consumer Council and consumer problems arbitrator committees, Ministry’s costs for the purpose of protecting the consumer and other expenses and additional payments provided they do not exceed 200% of the highest public official salary (including additional indicator) to be made to the staff at amounts, processes and principals of which will be specified by the Ministry of Industry and Trade with the convenient opinion of Ministry of Finance, are paid from the allowance available in the budget of Ministry.
For the additional payments that are given to the staff (including staff on contract), rules of Law 657 related to salaries are applied and no tax or deduction is applied to these payments except from stamp tax.
OTHER RULES
ARTICLE 30 – General rules are applied for the cases for which no rule is defined in this Law.
LEGISLATIONS AND REGULATIONS
ARTICLE 31 – Regulations proposed in this Law are introduced by the Ministry after the opinions of related public organizations, professional supervisory organizations and consumer organizations within one year after the publication of the Law. Ministry is authorized to take the required precautions and arrange regulations within the legislation, related to the implementation of Law.
REMOVED RULES
ARTICLE 32 – Law 3489 related to Sales Obligation without Bargaining and Law 632 related to Introduction and Selling Together Vehicles, Motor, Machine, Tools and Devices That Are Imported or Produced Domestically are not valid anymore. ARTICLE 32.- (Alternate: 4822 - 6.3.2003 / m.37 - Enforcement m.38) Law 3489 related to Sales Obligation without Bargaining, and Law 632 related to Introduction and Selling Together Vehicles, Motor, Machine, Tools and Devices That Are Imported Or Produced Domestically, and Law 3003 related to Inspection and Determination of Cost and Sales Prices of Industrial Products are not valid anymore.
TEMPORARY ARTICLE 1 – Until consumer courts are established, the court that will handle the cases that need to be handled in consumer courts are specified by the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors.
TEMPORARY ARTICLE 1.- (4822 - 6.3.2003) Credit Card debts that are to be or already in an executional proceeding by not paying cause of the default event of the debtor, before the publication date of this Law, are paid in twelve installments by applying the overdue interest that will not exceed 50% annually to the principal on the default date.
All kinds of execution proceedings cause of credit card debts are stopped by paying the first installment according to the rule above and are abolished totally paying the last installment.
These rules are applied when the consumer applies to the creditor in written within thirty days after the publication date of the Law.
VALIDITY
ARTICLE 33 – This Law will be valid 6 months after it is published.
EXECUTIVE
ARTICLE 34 – Rules of these Law are executed by the Ministry.
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