plants and retailers death by eu distance selling regulations

Well the weather here has been lovely for several days and have ordered the nemaslugs for the blighters cos they have decimated my basil before it has even established.  This year have planted carrots, cauliflower, kohl rabi, mooli, barlotti beans, broad beans, peas, spinach, onions, chilli peppers as well as bell peppers.  Let’s see what comes through and how well the nemaslug will work.  The glass for the greenhouses broke last month so have ordered polycarbonate – am waiting for them to arrive – let’s hope they are hardier than glass and the strong winds don’t fly them away – eeeks.  Moved the grapevine to the greenhouse on the lovely weekend just before it snowed so not sure if it survived as there is a huge hole waiting to be filled with the polycarbonate.  So let’s hope it has survived.

The Euro parliament are suggesting a new law which is great for the consumer but could be the death of the retailer selling online.  What it will certainly do though is bring prices online up quite heftily.  What this new Distance Selling Regulation or DSR for short proposes is that anything sold online to a consumer for over 40 euro and is returned for whatever reason the cost of postage must be met by the retailer.   The problem with this though is that it will open up the problem of returns to shops where the consumer will ask to be reimbursed for the cost of their transporting it to the shop by bus or taxi or car or even consumers asking for payment for transport just for going to the shop to buy something.  Well will definitely be watching how this progresses.  Also if you do not have on your website that goods can be returnable within 14 days if a consumer changes his/her mind then guess what the time period to change your mind to keep the goods is upped to three months!  Looks like too many people paid far too much at the Euro Parliament giving out fat cat crap without actually thinking how it will work cos it looks like it could backfire on the consumers.  Of course there are so many rogue retailers  and they should concentrate on how to capture them and prosecute them.  I’d be happy to advise them.