Consumer Rights Lawyer

Our law office operating in Istanbul Kartal provides legal consultancy and litigation attorney services in matters concerning consumers, particularly lawsuits heard in the Consumer Court, consumer rights, and compensation of damages suffered by consumers before the Consumer Arbitration Committee and Consumer Courts in cases where the goods and services purchased from sellers and producers are defective.

If the goods or services purchased by consumers do not match the sample shown or do not have the required characteristics, consumers have certain optional rights and the right to compensation. We provide services and support to consumers in the resolution of such and similar disputes.

Consumer Rights Litigation Services

• Subscription agreement lawsuits
• Lawsuits arising from defective services
• Lawsuits arising from defective goods
• Warranty product lawsuits
• Timeshare and vacation ownership lawsuits
• Door-to-door sales lawsuits
• Lawsuits arising from distance sales
• Lawsuits arising from unfair terms
• Credit card agreement lawsuits
• Lawsuits arising from package tours
• Lawsuits arising from consumer loans
• Lawsuits arising from housing finance agreements
• Lawsuits arising from installment and promotional sales
• Applications to the Advertising Board against commercial advertising principles and unfair commercial practices
• Commercial advertising and unfair commercial practices
• Applications to the Consumer Problems Arbitration Committee

Consumer Lawyer Kartal

What is a Consumer Transaction? Who is a Consumer?

Consumer: A natural or legal person acting for purposes that are not commercial or professional,

Consumer transaction: Any contract or legal transaction established between consumers and natural or legal persons, including public legal entities, acting for commercial or professional purposes or acting on behalf of or for the account of such persons in goods or services markets, including contracts for work, carriage, brokerage, insurance, representation, banking, and similar agreements,

What is a Defective Good?

A defective good is a good that, at the time of delivery to the consumer, does not conform to the agreed sample or model or does not have the features it should objectively possess, and is therefore in breach of the contract.

Goods that do not possess one or more of the features stated on their packaging, label, user manual, website, or in advertisements and announcements; that are contrary to the qualities stated by the seller or determined in technical regulations; that do not meet the intended use of equivalent goods; or that contain material, legal, or economic deficiencies that reduce or eliminate the benefits reasonably expected by the consumer are also considered defective.

Failure to deliver the goods within the time agreed in the contract or failure to assemble them properly when installation is to be carried out by or under the responsibility of the seller is considered improper performance. If the installation is to be done by the consumer, any incorrectness or deficiency in the installation instructions that results in faulty assembly is also considered improper performance.

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Liability for Defective Goods

The seller is obliged to deliver the goods to the consumer in accordance with the sales contract. The seller is not bound by statements made through advertising if they can prove that they were unaware of such statements, could not reasonably have been expected to know of them, that the content of the statement had been corrected at the time of contracting, or that the decision to contract was not causally linked to the statement.

Burden of Proof

Any defects that appear within six months from the date of delivery are presumed to have existed at the time of delivery. In this case, the burden of proving that the goods are not defective lies with the seller. This presumption does not apply if it is incompatible with the nature of the goods or the defect.

If the consumer was aware of the defect at the time of contracting or if it was expected that they should have been aware, there is no breach of contract. Apart from these cases, the consumer's optional rights remain reserved.

Defective goods to be offered for sale must have a label containing explanatory information about the defect placed on the product or its packaging by the manufacturer, importer, or seller, in a way that the consumer can easily read. This information must also be provided to the consumer on the invoice, receipt, or sales document. Products that do not comply with technical regulations may not be placed on the market.

Consumer's Optional Rights in Case of Defective Goods

If it is determined that the goods are defective, the consumer may:

• Rescind the contract by declaring readiness to return the goods,
• Retain the goods and request a discount from the sales price proportional to the defect,
• Request free repair of the goods, provided that it does not require excessive expense,
• If possible, request replacement of the goods with a non-defective equivalent,

The seller is obliged to fulfill the consumer's preferred request.

The rights to free repair or replacement with a non-defective equivalent can also be exercised against the manufacturer or importer. The seller, manufacturer, and importer are jointly and severally liable for fulfilling these rights. The manufacturer or importer is not liable if they can prove that the defect arose after the product was placed on the market by them.

If free repair or replacement with a non-defective equivalent would bring about disproportionate difficulties for the seller, the consumer may instead exercise the right to rescind the contract or to request a discount proportional to the defect. In determining disproportionality, factors such as the value of the goods without the defect, the significance of the defect, and whether exercising other optional rights would pose a problem for the consumer are taken into account.

If the consumer chooses free repair or replacement, the request must be fulfilled within a maximum of thirty business days from the date the request is made to the seller, manufacturer, or importer; in the case of residential and vacation properties, this period is sixty business days. For certain goods listed in the annex to the regulation issued under Article 58 of the Consumer Law, the repair request must be fulfilled within the maximum repair time specified in the regulation. Otherwise, the consumer is free to exercise other optional rights.

If the consumer chooses to rescind the contract or request a discount proportional to the defect, the total amount paid or the discount amount must be immediately refunded to the consumer.

All expenses arising from the exercise of optional rights must be covered by the party fulfilling the consumer's chosen right. The consumer may also claim compensation under the provisions of the Turkish Code of Obligations along with one of these optional rights.

Consumer Lawyer Kartal

Statute of Limitations

Unless a longer period is specified in the law or in the contract between the parties, liability for defective goods is subject to a two-year statute of limitations from the date of delivery to the consumer, even if the defect appears later. For residential or vacation properties, this period is five years from the date of delivery.

Unless otherwise provided in the third paragraph of Article 10 of the Consumer Law, the seller's liability for defective goods in second-hand sales is no less than one year, and no less than three years for residential or vacation properties.

If the defect has been fraudulently concealed or caused by gross fault, the statute of limitations provisions do not apply.

What is a Defective Service?

A defective service is one that does not commence within the time specified in the contract or does not have the features agreed upon by the parties or that it should objectively possess, and is therefore in breach of the contract.

Services that do not possess the qualities stated by the provider, on its website, or in advertisements and announcements; or that contain material, legal, or economic deficiencies that reduce or eliminate the value of the service in terms of the purpose of use or the benefits reasonably expected by the consumer are considered defective.

Liability for Defective Services

The provider is obliged to perform the service in accordance with the contract. The provider is not bound by statements made through advertising if they can prove that they were unaware of such statements, could not reasonably have been expected to know of them, that the content of the statement had been corrected at the time of contracting, or that the decision to contract was not causally linked to the statement.

Consumer's Optional Rights

In cases where the service is performed defectively, the consumer is free to exercise one of the following rights against the provider: to have the service re-performed, to have the resulting work repaired free of charge, to request a discount proportional to the defect, or to rescind the contract. The provider is obliged to fulfill the consumer's preferred request. All expenses arising from the exercise of optional rights must be covered by the provider. The consumer may also claim compensation under the provisions of the Turkish Code of Obligations along with one of these optional rights.

If free repair or re-performance of the service would bring about disproportionate difficulties for the provider, the consumer cannot exercise these rights. In determining disproportionality, factors such as the value of the service without the defect, the significance of the defect, and whether exercising other optional rights would pose a problem for the consumer are taken into account.

If the consumer chooses to rescind the contract or request a discount proportional to the defect, the total amount paid or the discount amount must be immediately refunded to the consumer.

If free repair or re-performance is chosen, considering the nature of the service and the consumer's purpose in using it, this request must be fulfilled within a reasonable period and in a manner that does not cause serious problems for the consumer. In any case, this period may not exceed thirty business days from the date the request is made to the provider. Otherwise, the consumer is free to exercise other optional rights.

Consumer Lawyer Kartal

Statute of Limitations

Unless a longer period is specified in the law or in the contract between the parties, liability for defective services is subject to a two-year statute of limitations from the date of performance of the service, even if the defect appears later. If the defect has been fraudulently concealed or caused by gross fault, the statute of limitations provisions do not apply.

Basic Principles

Contracts and information that are required by the Consumer Law to be in writing must be prepared in at least twelve-point font, in a clear, plain, and understandable language, and a copy must be provided to the consumer in paper form or via a permanent data storage device. The absence of one or more of the required conditions does not affect the validity of the contract. Such deficiencies must be remedied immediately by the party preparing the contract. The conditions stipulated in the contract may not be altered to the detriment of the consumer during the term of the contract.

No additional payment may be demanded from the consumer for acts that the consumer may reasonably expect to be performed within the scope of the goods or services provided and that are among the legal obligations of the party preparing the contract, or for expenses made in the interest of the party preparing the contract.

Any information regarding all kinds of fees and expenses to be charged from the consumer pursuant to the contracts regulated under the Consumer Law must be provided to the consumer in writing as an annex to the contract. In the case of contracts concluded via remote communication tools, this information must be provided in a manner appropriate to the means of remote communication used. The burden of proving that this information has been provided to the consumer lies with the party preparing the contract.

Only registered promissory notes, issued separately for each installment payment, may be drawn for transactions carried out by the consumer. Promissory notes issued in violation of this paragraph are invalid in favor of the consumer.

In consumer transactions, personal guarantees taken in return for the consumer's obligations are considered ordinary surety, regardless of their designation. Personal guarantees given by the other party regarding the consumer's receivables are deemed joint surety unless otherwise stipulated in other laws. Compound interest is not applied in consumer transactions, including cases of default. All provisions of the Consumer Law also apply to participation banks. Implementation is carried out taking profit share into account.

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Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts

An unfair term is a contractual condition included in the contract without negotiation with the consumer, which causes a significant imbalance to the detriment of the consumer in the rights and obligations of the parties arising from the contract in a manner contrary to the principle of good faith.

Unfair terms included in contracts made with consumers are absolutely null and void. The other provisions of the contract remain valid. In this case, the party preparing the contract cannot claim that they would not have concluded the contract with the remaining provisions if the null terms had not been included.

If a contractual term has been prepared in advance and included in a standard contract in such a way that the consumer has been unable to influence its content, it is deemed not to have been negotiated with the consumer. If the party preparing the contract claims that a standard term has been individually negotiated, they bear the burden of proof. If it is concluded that the contract as a whole is a standard contract, the fact that certain elements or specific provisions of a term have been negotiated does not prevent the application of this article to the rest of the contract.

Where contractual terms are in writing, they must be drafted in a clear and understandable language that the consumer can comprehend. If a provision in the contract is unclear or open to more than one interpretation, it shall be interpreted in favor of the consumer.

The unfairness of a contractual term is determined at the time of the conclusion of the contract, taking into account the nature of the goods or services subject to the contract, the circumstances existing at the time of conclusion, and the other provisions of the contract or the provisions of another contract to which the unfair term is related.

In assessing the unfairness of contractual terms, provided that these terms are drafted in clear and understandable language, no evaluation may be made regarding both the balance between the essential obligations arising from the contract and the balance between the market value of the goods or services and the price set in the contract.