2026 is a pivotal year for consumer protection regulation both in the UK and across the EU.
With the UK implementing major reforms under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (“DMCCA”) and the EU preparing to reshape the digital consumer landscape under the upcoming Digital Fairness Act (“DFA”), the regulatory environment is becoming increasingly dynamic and interventionist.
A clear set of priority areas are taking shape for consumer regulators:
- Pricing transparency (subscriptions, drip pricing, total price clarity)
- Protection of minors including the EU’s increased scrutiny of social media and gambling features
- Dark patterns and manipulative design including addictive UX
- Personalisation & algorithmic transparency including unfair or exploitative personalisation practices
- Sustainability in line with the EU’s 2030 Consumer Agenda
Enforcement trends
We are expecting to see increased enforcement action from the UK’s consumer regulator (CMA) on online pricing, drip-pricing prohibitions, subscription practices, and online choice architecture (see our alert here). As we have already seen with the £473,000 fixed penalty for Euro Car Parks Ltd, the CMA is adopting an assertive and fast-moving enforcement posture.
In the EU, whilst the DFA is still being developed and Commission-level enforcement may slow, we expect national regulators to continue driving robust enforcement action. We are already seeing this in Italy, the Netherlands and Hungary, where consumer authorities have been active on online pricing transparency and digital interface design.
| 2026 Timeline | |
| 19 March 2026 | UK CMA: Unfair Contract Terms Guidance Consultation Closes – CMA consulting on revised Unfair Contract Terms (UCT) guidance under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. – Draft includes a refreshed approach to assessing fairness in digital consumer contracts and associated technical guidance. Once finalised, the new guidance will replace CMA37. – Consultation closes 19 March 2026 Action: Audit contract terms, auto-renewal practices, cancellation flows, and parity between sign-up and cancellation (“easy in – easy out”). |
| 19 June 2026 | EU Mandatory Withdrawal Button (Directive (EU) 2023/2673) By 19 June 2026, all online contracting journeys must incorporate a compliant withdrawal mechanism: – A clearly labelled, prominent withdrawal button stating: “withdraw from the contract here” – Two-step flow: withdrawal → confirm → automatic confirmation on a durable medium. – Accessible throughout the withdrawal period, and available without login barriers (i.e., no forced authentication). Action: Traders operating in the EU must redesign cancellation and withdrawal journeys now. A compliant EU withdrawal button becomes mandatory from 19 June 2026, and it must be prominently displayed, continuously available, and no harder to use than sign‑up |
| 27 September 2026 | 2026 ECGT Changes: Harmonised Guarantee Notice and Green‑Claims Crackdown Even though the EU Green Claims Directive remains on hold, sustainability enforcement in the EU will nonetheless tighten materially in 2026. This is driven in part by the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive (Directive (EU) 2024/825) (“ECGT”), which Member States must transpose by 27 March 2026, with rules applying from 27 September 2026. The ECGT significantly reinforces the EU consumer‑protection framework in relation to environmental marketing, by: – Expanding the blacklist of unfair commercial practices to cover several forms of greenwashing (e.g., vague, generic or unsubstantiated environmental claims; claims based solely on emissions offsetting; sustainability labels not based on approved certification schemes). – Introducing stricter substantiation standards for environmental claims and prohibiting claims about future performance unless supported by clear, verifiable and publicly accessible commitments and targets. – Requiring greater transparency around product durability, including restrictions on claims relating to longevity, reparability or circularity unless these can be demonstrated. – Mandating clearer information at the point of sale, including sustainability‑related product characteristics where these are marketed as benefits. The ECGT also amends existing EU consumer‑rights legislation by introducing a mandatory EU‑wide standardised notice on the statutory legal guarantee of conformity. From 27 September 2026, Article 22a ECGT requires that this information be provided using a harmonised EU template, displayed: – Clearly and prominently at the point of sale (digital or physical); – In accordance with the exact format set out in the ECGT; and – Unmodified, including: – a reminder of the existence of the legal guarantee of conformity; – a statement of the minimum two‑year duration; – clarification that longer periods may apply under national law. Action: From 27 September 2026, every EU point‑of‑sale journey must display the new harmonised legal‑guarantee notice exactly as prescribed — prominently, in full, and without modification. Businesses should also review green claims and durability messaging, as the ECGT’s wider greenwashing prohibitions apply from the same date |
| Autumn 2026 | UK Subscription Rules: Secondary Legislation Expected Under the DMCCA framework, further detail is expected on subscription compliance, including: – Enhanced pre-contractual disclosures – Renewal reminders for all subscription types – Expanded cancellation rights and true “easy in – easy out” parity – Controls on free-trial-to-paid transitions – Parallel developments in Italy regarding subscription regulations Action: Businesses will need to adapt subscription journeys to meet DMCCA transparency expectations. |
| Q4 2026 | EU Digital Fairness Act (DFA): Proposal Expected The European Commission is expected to publish its proposal in Q4 2026. Early insights from the Commission consultation reveal the intended scope, in line with the Commission’s 2030 Consumer Agenda: – Dark-pattern prohibitions: manipulative flows, hidden opt-outs, false urgency, multi-step or confusing cancellations. – Transparency for algorithmic and personalised environments: disclosures around personalised pricing, ranking, and targeted engagements. – Addictive design controls: rules addressing digital features designed to encourage compulsive use — particularly in minors. – Minors’ protection & potential age restrictions for social media platforms (including age limits for gambling-style features in response to the European Parliament’s call for stricter controls – this could coincide with the direction of travel in Europe to ban social media for under 16s in response to political pressure to address child safety concerns). This is seen as an intersection of consumer, gambling, and minor-protection law – Influencer marketing, unfair personalisation, and safeguards against exploitative targeting (Minor protection, dark patterns…) |
| Strategic message: Whilst there is still active debate over whether the DFA, as planned, is necessary or risks duplicating existing EU digital frameworks, the direction of travel is clear – it is set to become the most significant EU consumer reform since the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (“UCPD”). Companies should prepare for substantial UX, transparency and algorithmic‑governance implications, regardless of where the final compromises land. | |
Where to focus next:
- Map a clear picture of consumer journeys and where future UK/EU rules are likely to bite, including product listings, checkout, subscriptions, cancellation and complaints.
- Prepare for the EU withdrawal-button requirement by redesigning cancellation and withdrawal paths.
- Sense-check pricing transparency, particularly drip pricing, free trials and conversions to paid services.
- Run a contract fairness review, anticipating the UK’s updated UCT guidance.
- Review UX for dark patterns, addictive designs and personalisation transparency.
- Track the DFA closely, particularly expected obligations on manipulative design, protection of minors, and personalisation – not necessarily to act immediately, but to avoid future rework as the framework crystallises.
If you’d like to explore any of these issues in more detail, please reach out to the Baker McKenzie Consumer Regulatory team.
