Chapter 8Interpretation of Part
217Supply of goods or digital content
(1)This section provides for how references to the supply of goods or digital content are to be read for the purposes of this Part.
(2)References to a person who supplies goods or digital content are to be read as including references to a person who seeks to supply goods or digital content (and references to a person who receives goods or digital content are to be read in a corresponding way).
(3)The supply of goods includes, in relation to buildings and other structures, construction of them by one person for another.
(4)References to a person supplying goods under—
(a)a hire-purchase agreement,
(b)a credit-sale agreement, or
(c)a conditional sale agreement,
are to be read as including references to a person who conducts any antecedent negotiations relating to the agreement.
(5)The following terms have the meanings given by section 189(1) of the Consumer Credit Act 1974—
“antecedent negotiations”;
“conditional sale agreement”;
“credit sale agreement”;
“hire-purchase agreement”.
218Supply of services
(1)This section provides for how references to the supply of services are to be read for the purposes of this Part.
(2)References to a person who supplies services are to be read as including references to a person who seeks to supply services (and references to a person who receives services are to be read in a corresponding way).
(3)The supply of services does not include the provision of services under a contract of service or of apprenticeship.
(4)It is immaterial whether the contract mentioned in subsection (3)—
(a)is express or implied, or
(b)if express, is oral or in writing.
(5)The supply of services includes—
(a)performing for gain or reward any activity other than the supply of goods or digital content;
(b)rendering services to order;
(c)the provision of services by making them available to potential users;
(d)making arrangements for sharing the use of electronic communications apparatus by means of a relevant agreement, within the meaning of paragraph 18 of Schedule 3A to the Communications Act 2003 (the electronic communications code);
(e)agreeing to the full or partial settlement of a consumer’s liabilities or purported liabilities in return for the consumer meeting a demand for payment.
219Accessories
(1)This section applies for the purposes of this Part.
(2)A person (“A”) is an accessory to a commercial practice of another person (“B”) if—
(a)B is a body corporate,
(b)A has a special relationship with B,
(c)the commercial practice is one that B has engaged in or is engaging in, and
(d)the commercial practice takes place with the consent or connivance of A.
220Special relationships
(1)This section applies for the purposes of this Part.
(2)A person has a special relationship with a body corporate if the person is—
(a)a controller of the body corporate, or
(b)a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate or a person purporting to act in such a capacity.
(3)A person is a controller of a body corporate if—
(a)the directors of the body corporate, or of another body corporate which is its controller, are accustomed to act in accordance with the person’s directions or instructions, or
(b)either alone or with one or more associates, the person is entitled to exercise or control the exercise of one third or more of the voting power at any general meeting of the body corporate or of another body corporate which is its controller.
(4)A person (“P”) is an associate of an individual if—
(a)P is the spouse or civil partner of the individual;
(b)P is a relative of the individual;
(c)P is a relative of the individual’s spouse or civil partner;
(d)P is the spouse or civil partner of a relative of the individual;
(e)P is a spouse or civil partner of a relative of the individual’s spouse or civil partner;
(f)P lives in the same household as the individual otherwise than merely because P, or the individual, is the other’s employer, tenant, lodger or boarder;
(g)P is the relative of a person who is an associate of the individual by virtue of paragraph (f);
(h)P has at some time in the past fallen within any of paragraphs (a) to (g);
(i)P is in partnership with the individual;
(j)the individual is an associate of an individual with whom P is in partnership.
(5)A person (“P”) is an associate of a body corporate if—
(a)P is a controller of the body corporate, or
(b)P is an associate of a person who is a controller of the body corporate.
(6)A body corporate is an associate of another body corporate if—
(a)the same person is a controller of both;
(b)a person (“P”) is a controller of one and persons who are P’s associates are controllers of the other;
(c)a person (“P”) is a controller of one and P and persons who are P’s associates are controllers of the other;
(d)a group of two or more persons is a controller of each company and the groups consist of the same persons;
(e)a group of two or more persons is a controller of each company and the groups may be regarded as consisting of the same persons by treating (in one or more cases) a member of either group as replaced by a person of whom that person is an associate.
(7)In this section “relative” means a brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, lineal ancestor or lineal descendant.
221Enhanced consumer measures
(1)References in this Part to “enhanced consumer measures” are references to—
(a)redress measures (see subsection (2)),
(b)compliance measures (see subsection (3)), or
(c)choice measures (see subsection (4)).
(2)Redress measures are—
(a)measures offering compensation or other redress to affected consumers;
(b)in cases where the commercial practice constituting a relevant infringement relates to a contract, measures enabling affected consumers the option to terminate (but not vary) the contract;
(c)in cases where the affected consumers cannot be identified, or cannot be identified without disproportionate cost to the person giving the undertaking in question or against whom the order in question is made, measures intended to be in the collective interests of consumers.
(3)Compliance measures are measures intended to prevent, or reduce the risk of the occurrence or repetition of, the infringing conduct (which may include measures imposed for the purpose of improving compliance with consumer law more generally).
(4)Choice measures are measures intended to enable consumers to choose more effectively between persons supplying goods, services or digital content.
(5)In this section—
(a)references to affected consumers are references to consumers who have suffered loss as a result of the infringing conduct or who have otherwise been affected in any other way by the conduct;
(b)references to the “infringing conduct” are to the conduct that has given rise to the enforcement order or undertaking concerned.
222Other interpretative provisions
In this Part—
“business” includes—
(a)
a trade, craft or profession,
(b)
any other undertaking carried on for gain or reward, and
(c)
the activities of any government department or local or public authority;
“enforcement order” means an order made under section 156;
“enforcer” means a public designated enforcer or a private designated enforcer;
“goods” includes—
(a)
immoveable property, and
(b)
rights and obligations;
“interim enforcement order” means an order made under section 159;
“interim online interface order” means an order made under section 162;
“online interface order” means an order made under section 161;
“subsidiary” has the meaning given by section 1159 of the Companies Act 2006;
“supply” includes supply by means of sale, lease, hire or hire purchase.
223Index of defined expressions
In this Part, the expressions listed in the left-hand column have the meaning given by, or are to be interpreted in accordance with, the provisions listed in the right-hand column.