A new regulation has been made regarding consumers' right to cancel at their discretion.

The administrative fines applied in the inspections of the Ministry of Commerce have been increased by 43.93%. The penalty increases determined according to the revaluation rate will come into effect as of January 1, 2025.

According to the statement made by the Ministry, the administrative fines applied in the inspections of the Ministry of Commerce have been increased by 43.93% as of January 1, 2025. It was stated that the administrative fines and their lower and upper limits, which are included in the regulations of the General Directorate of Internal Trade and the General Directorate of Consumer Protection and Market Surveillance, were determined by the General Communiqué of the Tax Procedure Law published in the Official Gazette dated November 27, 2024, and numbered 32735, which set the revaluation rate for 2024 at 43.93%, and that these fines will be applied with the increased revaluation rate starting from January 1, 2025.

PENALTIES FOR EXCESSIVE PRICE INCREASES

According to the statement from the Ministry; if a producer, supplier, or retail business makes an excessive increase in the selling price of a good or service within the scope of the revaluation rates, an administrative fine of 100,000 TL to 1 million TL will be applied in 2024, while the lower limit of the administrative fine to be applied in 2025 has been set at 143,930 TL and the upper limit at 1,439,300 TL.

PENALTIES FOR RETAIL AND PRODUCER BUSINESSES

If retail businesses such as shopping centers and chain stores, as well as producers and suppliers, do not comply with the measures taken and the secondary regulations made by the Ministry of Commerce, and if they act contrary to the professional conduct rules and the regulations made in this regard, an administrative fine of 15,856 TL to 475,380 TL will be applied for each violation in 2024, while the lower limit of the administrative fine to be applied in 2025 has been set at 22,807 TL and the upper limit at 684,214 TL. For those who do not provide the requested books, documents, and other records, or provide them incompletely, or obstruct the inspectors from performing their duties, the lower limit of the administrative fine to be applied in 2025 will be 114,035 TL, and the upper limit will be 570,178 TL.

PENALTIES FOR ACTIVITIES DISTURBING MARKET BALANCE UP TO 17 MILLION

In addition, if producers, suppliers, and retail businesses engage in activities that create scarcity in the market, disturb market balance, and hinder consumers' access to goods, an administrative fine of 1 million TL to 12 million TL will be applied in 2024, while the lower limit of the administrative fine to be applied in 2025 has been set at 1,439,300 TL and the upper limit at 17,271,600 TL.

PENALTIES FOR DUMPING VEGETABLES AND FRUITS

In the trade of vegetables and fruits, if professionals make commercial agreements among themselves or with producers, engage in coordinated actions, and abuse a dominant position to hinder free competition, create scarcity in the market, cause prices to rise, or prevent prices from falling, an administrative fine of 123,213 TL will be applied in 2024, while the administrative fine to be applied in 2025 will be 177,340 TL. For shopping centers, large stores, chain stores, and other businesses engaged in retail trade, if there are unfair commercial practices in the supply chain, store-branded products, shelf allocation in large stores and chain stores, promotional sales, continuous discounted sales, working hours, common areas in shopping centers, and various issues regarding common expenses and revenues, fines will be applied in various amounts from 14,335 TL to 718,987 TL for 2025, based on the revaluation rates.

PENALTIES FROM THE ADVERTISING BOARD

To prevent consumer grievances caused by misleading and deceptive advertisements and unfair commercial practices, as well as unfair competition that disrupts fair competition conditions, the administrative fines applied in 2024 ranged from 55,000 TL to 22,100,000 TL, while in 2025, the fines will range from 79,161 TL to 31,808,530 TL, taking into account the type of medium where the violation occurred, the affected consumer group, the size of the unfairly obtained benefit or damage caused, and the fault and economic situation of the violator.

PENALTIES FOR FIRMS THAT ENTER INTO CONTRACTS WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION

For sellers who do not obtain an authorization certificate from the Provincial Directorate of Commerce to enter into contracts with consumers outside the workplace, the administrative fine applied in 2024 was 1,100,122 TL, while in 2025 it will be 1,583,405 TL.

For violations of the provisions regarding contracts and notifications that are required to be prepared in writing according to the Law No. 6502 on the Protection of Consumers, such as not preparing contracts in a font size of twelve points, not providing a copy of the prepared contracts to consumers, changing the terms of the contracts to the detriment of consumers during the contract period, not providing information about any fees and expenses to be requested from consumers as an annex to the contract, sending or offering goods or services that were not ordered, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each transaction or contract in 2024, while in 2025 it will be 3,166 TL. In cases where a displayed good or service is avoided from sale without a valid reason, an administrative fine will be applied for each detected transaction or contract, which will be at least 10% of the total selling price of the good or service avoided from sale, including all taxes, in 2024, and at least 3,166 TL in 2025.

If the legal obligations regarding the accurate and complete information of consumers about the price tags and price lists of goods offered for sale in retail businesses are not complied with, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each violation in 2024, while in 2025 it will be 3,166 TL.

POST-SALE SERVICE OBLIGATIONS

The administrative fine applied to producers and importers who do not obtain the post-sale service adequacy certificate required to be obtained from the Ministry of Commerce was 1,115,000 TL in 2024, while it has been determined as 1,604,819 TL for 2025.

During the validity period of the post-sale service competency certificate, for manufacturers and importers who do not provide the minimum number of service stations, an administrative fine of 124,000 TL in 2024 will be applied for each missing service station, which will increase to 178,473 TL in 2025. For manufacturers or importers who do not register or update the information regarding authorized service stations in the system created by the Ministry of Commerce, an administrative fine of 18,000 TL will be applied for each service station in 2024, increasing to 25,907 TL in 2025.

MAXIMUM REPAIR PROCESS AS A SANCTION ISSUE

If the maximum repair period is exceeded or if maintenance and repair services are not provided in accordance with the regulations, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each detected violation in 2024, increasing to 3,166 TL in 2025. In cases where the warranty certificate and the Turkish introduction and user manual are not prepared or are inadequately prepared, illegal practices, or where the warranty certificate and the Turkish introduction and user manual are not delivered to the consumer at all or in accordance with the regulations, an administrative fine of 2,172 TL will be applied to the seller in 2024, increasing to 3,126 TL in 2025.

If service stations operating independently of any manufacturer or importer do not use the term "special service" in a visible and readable manner in all their media and activities, an administrative fine of 18,000 TL will be applied to special service stations in 2024, increasing to 25,907 TL in 2025.

RENEWED PRODUCT SALES AND ACTIVITIES

In addition, regarding goods requiring a renewal authorization certificate, if renewal activities are carried out without a certificate, an administrative fine of 1,766,274 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 2,542,198 TL in 2025. For violations and deficiencies detected in the sale of renewed products, an administrative fine of 1,765 TL will be applied for each transaction in 2024, increasing to 2,540 TL in 2025.

CREDIT AND SUBSCRIPTION VIOLATIONS

If credit cards without membership fees are not offered to consumers, an administrative fine of 55,006,905 TL will be applied to the relevant institutions in 2024, increasing to 79,171,438 TL in 2025. In consumer credit and housing finance contracts, for violations of the Law regarding the right of withdrawal, interest rates, early payment, and default, as well as for lenders who demand unfair and unjustified insurance, fees, and expenses in exchange for consumers using credit, an administrative fine of 10,978 TL will be applied for each violating contract or transaction in 2024, increasing to 15,800 TL in 2025.

ARBITRARY CANCELLATION OF ORDERS IN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE

In electronic commerce, regarding distance contracts involving consumers, in cases of violations related to the right of withdrawal and the seller's arbitrary and unjustified order cancellation rights, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each violating transaction or contract in 2024, increasing to 3,166 TL in 2025. For violations of the obligation of intermediary service providers to establish and maintain a system that allows consumers to communicate and follow up on their requests and notifications, an administrative fine of 3,532,548 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 5,084,396 TL in 2025. Regarding subscription contracts for essential goods or services such as electricity, water, and electronic communication, which are increasingly expanding in application, for violations of information and approval obligations, failure to automatically extend expired subscription contracts, changes to the terms of commitment to the detriment of the consumer, and failure to fulfill requests for contract termination within seven days, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each contract or transaction in 2024, increasing to 3,166 TL in 2025. For violations detected in installment sales contracts and package tour contracts with consumers, an administrative fine of 2,200 TL will be applied for each violating transaction or contract in 2024, increasing to 3,166 TL in 2025. For violations of the provisions related to timeshare contracts, an administrative fine of 12,363 TL will be applied for each contract or transaction in 2024, increasing to 17,794 TL in 2025.

PENALTIES FOR PREPAID HOUSING SALES

For each contract or transaction that violates the provisions related to prepaid housing sales contracts, an administrative fine of 10,978 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 15,800 TL in 2025. For each undelivered housing, an administrative fine of 247,278 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 355,907 TL in 2025. For those who sell housing to consumers on a prepaid basis without obtaining a construction permit, an administrative fine of 1,100,122 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 1,583,405 TL in 2025. For sellers who do not fulfill the obligation to provide collateral, an administrative fine of 5,500,667 TL will be applied in 2024, increasing to 7,917,110 TL in 2025.

SCOPE OF REGULATIONS IS EXPANDING

On the other hand, under the Temporary Article 3 added to the Law No. 6502 by Article 17 of Law No. 7392 published in the Official Gazette dated 01.04.2022 and numbered 31796, the administrative fines to be applied in cases where administrative fines should be imposed according to the regulations of the Law No. 6502 prior to the mentioned amendment have also been increased in accordance with the revaluation rate.