Legal regulations in the context of e-commerce customer service from the perspective of consumers and market entities

Abstract

Background: Due to the dynamic development and characteristics of the e-commerce industry, an important element in its proper functioning are the legal regulations aimed at, on the one hand, enabling the proper functioning of entrepreneurs who conduct this type of business, and on the other, protecting the interests of the people who use the services of the e-commerce industry, in particular, consumers. This article presents the most important legal acts that regulate the func­tioning of online commerce and characterizes their most important provisions.

Research purpose: The purpose of this work was to examine whether online stores that operate in Poland respect the law. It also looked at how these provisions affect customer service.

Methods: The author conducted her own research both among e-shop customers and salesmen and employees of electronic stores. The survey was conducted in 2019 using an electronic ques­tionnaire. The results were expanded to include the results of secondary research, thanks to which it was possible to compare customers’ expectations regarding the level of service with the activi­ties carried out by stores.

Conclusions: The analysis regarding the respect of legal provisions by e-stores and their imple­mentation in everyday customer service showed that both the employees of online stores and the customers themselves are not fully aware of their rights and obligations. Online stores often do not place mandatory information on their pages, and they do not always know about the possibil­ity of, e.g., returning the goods without giving a reason. Meanwhile, from the customer’s point of view, information about the terms of complaints and returns, or e-shop address data, are the foundation for building the company’s credibility.