The country’s consumer-rights watchdog has called for the current €2,000 limit for claims before the Small Claims Court to be raised.

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) said that it referred almost 5,000 consumers to the Small Claims Court in the first six months of this year – almost 1,000 more than in the same period last year.

The Small Claims Court allows consumers to resolve certain disputes with businesses through the District Court without having to engage the services of a solicitor.

Excluded

Grainne Griffin (CCPC director of communications) said, however, that many callers to the watchdog’s consumer helpline, such as car buyers and those with issues with home improvements, were automatically excluded from this option due to the low claim limit.

“The Small Claims Court is only open to claims for €2,000 or less, and this is out of step with many of the most basic and unavoidable expenses faced by consumers today’” she stated.

“This needs to change, and we are advocating for this limit to be increased,” Griffin added.

Of the callers referred to the Small Claims Court in the first half of the year, 624 cases were linked to home building and improvements, while 588 referrals concerned vehicles and transport.

Fines

Griffin also said that changes in the law were needed to give the CCPC the power to impose larger fines for serious offences – including fines linked to a percentage of a business’s turnover.

“We’ll use all the powers available to us, up to and including prosecution, to detect and penalise lawbreakers; however, we know that the level of fines issued for breaches of consumer-protection law is not always a deterrent, especially for large businesses,” she stated.

The comments came as the CCPC published its Consumer Helpline Report for the first six months of 2024, which showed an annual increase of 18% in the number of calls to 22,347.