19.09.2024

Prior to the conclusion of a contract, irrespective of the way of concluding it (at a provider’s point of sale or at a distance, using various means of communication), electronic communications service providers are required to give to end users a set of minimum information, in a standard summary format, regarding the services to be provided. The contract summary includes these minimum items of information, as a pre-contractual information method, and will become part of the contract concluded with the users. 

The contract summary template

The current regulations support users and oblige the providers to give essential information regarding the offer chosen by the user in the form of a contract summary. The summary must be drafted in a simple and comprehensible form, provided on a durable medium (paper, e-mail, DVD etc.) or – should that not be possible - in a document which can be easily opened, viewed and downloaded.

The contract summary template applies to all telephone, internet and television contracts and makes it easier for users to compare service offers. The summary template is in line with Regulation (EU) no. 2019/2243 establishing a template for the contract summary and it is available, in Romanian, here.

Content of the contract summary

The contract summary must contain the main elements of the offer, such as:

• the name, address and contact information of the provider, including for receiving complaints;
• the main features of each service provided;
• the fees due for the activation of the electronic communications service, as well as any recuring or consumption-related rate;
• the contract period and the conditions for its renewal and termination;
• a summary of information regarding the quality parameters and the remedies available to the user - in the case of the internet access services;
• to what extent the contracted products and services are designed for disabled end-users.

Important!

•  Receipt of the contract summary drafted in the standardised and simplified format is part of the process of pre-contractual information. The contract enters into force after user has expressed his/her consent on a durable medium.
• If, depending on the manner of concluding the contract, for objective technical reasons, it is impossible to provide the end user with the contract summary at the time of conclusion, it shall be provided subsequently, without undue delay, at the latest at the time of delivery of the terminal equipment or before the start of the provision of the requested service.
• The obligations regarding the receipt of the contract summary apply both to contracts concluded with residential users and to those concluded with other categories, such as micro-, small enterprises or non-profit organisations.

Complaint-related info 

Before complaining about any aspect regarding the conclusion of the contract, the users must ensure that they own and have verified the documents pertaining to the contract (pre-contractual information, contract summary, basic contract, general conditions, tariff brochure etc).

If the provider did not make available a contract summary at the conclusion of the contract for the provision of the electronic communications services, the users may complain to ANCOM.

If the providers do not comply with the clauses stipulated in the contract, consumers can notify the National Authority for Consumer Protection (ANPC), while end-users who are micro- and small enterprises or non-profit organisations can contact authorized mediators or courts. ANCOM can provide advice and mediation, but it has no attributions regarding the sanctioning of providers in such situation.