Discontinuation of the european online dispute resolution (ODR) platform and transition to new digital ADR tools

1.

Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 established and mandated the Commission to develop and maintain a European Online Dispute Resolution Platform (the ‘ODR platform’) at EU level, offering a single point of entry to consumers and traders seeking the out-of-court resolution of disputes arising from online sales or service contracts.

The ODR platform takes the form of an interactive website where consumers may request professional traders to agree to use an alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”) entity that is listed on the ODR platform and that complies with Directive 2013/11/EU.

Article 14 of the Regulation (EU) No 524/2013 required online traders and online marketplaces to provide, on their website, an easily accessible link to the ODR platform.

2.

This rule has been emphasized in Belgium by articles VI.45, 20° and XVI.4 of the Code of Economic Law.

The Guidelines regarding “information obligations in the E-commerce”, published on 22 April 2024 by the Ministry of the Economy, went a step further, particularly in section 1.1.2., “Consumer disputes”, where they specify that : “The “ODR” link must be made easily accessible to consumers (e.g. visible on every page of the website or placed in an appropriate section: ideally the “Customer Service” section, if available, or alternatively in the “Contact Us” or “Legal Notice” sections). Merely including this link in the general terms and conditions is not sufficient. For convenience, you may place on your website the banner made available by the European Commission, which contains the hyperlink to the platform”.

In other words, the Ministry imposed that this information appears both on the website (in an appropriate section) and in the general terms and conditions.

Following inspections by the General Directorate of the Economic Inspection, professional traders were therefore required to revise their websites and their terms and conditions, requiring the mobilisation of technical and financial resources, under penalty of sanctions.

3.

Now, the technocrats have decided to reverse course since a minority of visitors (between two and three million every year) used the ODR platform to submit a complaint and only 2 % of those complaints receive positive feedback from traders. All in all, this represents about 200 cases per year across the Union. The ODR Platform was therefore judged inefficient and financially unjustifiable given its minimal practical impact.

Following the adoption of the Regulation (EU) 2024/3228 the ODR Platform has been discontinued as of 20 March 2025. At the latest by 20 July 2025, all information, including personal data, related to cases in the ODR platform shall be deleted.

As a result, professional traders are once again required to intervene on their websites and general terms and conditions to amend them accordingly, removing all references and links to the now-defunct ODR platform. However, they should do so with the awareness that the ODR platform will soon be replaced by a new digital interactive tool — not a centralised complaint portal, but rather a guidance system directing users to national ADR bodies — once the revised ADR Directive enters into force in the coming months.

Further updates will be provided as the new system is rolled out.