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Press and Information
Court of Justice of the European Union
PRESS RELEASE No 60/22
Luxembourg, 7 April 2022
Judgment in Case C-249/21
Fuhrmann-2
Contract by electronic means: in order to be validly bound by such a contract,
consumers must clearly understand on the basis only of the words appearing on
the ordering button that as soon they click on that button they will be under an
obligation to pay
Fuhrmann-2 is a company governed by German law and the proprietor of the Goldener Anker hotel
in Krummhörn-Greetsiel (Germany). The rooms of that hotel can be rented, inter alia, through the
www.booking.com website, an online accommodation booking platform. On 19 July 2018, B., a
consumer, visited that website to search for hotel rooms in Krummhörn-Greetsiel for the period
from 28 May 2019 to 2 June 2019. The search results displayed included rooms in the Goldener
Anker hotel. B. then clicked on the image corresponding to that hotel, whereupon the available
rooms were displayed together with additional information relating, inter alia, to the facilities and
prices offered by that hotel for the selected period. Having decided to book four double rooms at
that hotel, B. clicked on the ‘I’ll reserve’ button and entered his personal details and the names of
the individuals accompanying him, before clicking on a button labelled with the words ‘complete
booking’. B. did not appear at the Goldener Anker hotel on 28 May 2019.
Fuhrmann-2 invoiced B., in accordance with its general terms and conditions, for cancellation fees
of €2 240, setting him a time limit of five working days for settlement of that sum. B. did not pay the
sum claimed. Fuhrmann-2 therefore brought an action for recovery of that sum before the Local
Court, Bottrop (Germany).
That court asked the Court of Justice whether, in the context of an ordering process relating to the
conclusion of a distance contract by electronic means, for the purpose of determining whether a
form of words displayed on the ordering button or on a similar function, such as the formulation
‘complete booking’, is a formulation ‘corresponding’ to the words ‘order with obligation to pay’, only
the words that appear on that button should be taken into account, or whether the overall
circumstances of the ordering process should also be taken into consideration.
In its judgment delivered today, the Court notes that, according to Directive 2011/83,
1
where a
distance contract is concluded by electronic means through an ordering process and entails an
obligation on the part of the consumer to pay, the trader must, first, provide that consumer, directly
before the placing of the order, with the essential information relating to the contract and, secondly,
explicitly inform that consumer that, in placing the order, he or she is bound by an obligation to pay.
As regards the latter obligation, it is apparent from the wording of Directive 2011/83 that the
ordering button or similar function must be labelled in an easily legible and unambiguous
manner with words indicating that the placing of the order places the consumer under an
obligation to pay the trader. While the directive mentions the formulation ‘order with obligation to
pay’, it is also apparent from its wording that that formulation serves as an example and that the
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Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on consumer rights, amending
Council Directive 93/13/EEC and Directive 1999/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing
Council Directive 85/577/EEC and Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ 2011 L 304,
p. 64).
www.curia.europa.eu
Member States are permitted to allow traders to use any other corresponding formulation,
provided that it is unambiguous as regards the creation of that obligation.
Therefore, where, as in the present case, national legislation transposing Directive 2011/83 does
not, like the directive itself, contain specific examples of corresponding formulations, traders are
free to use any words of their choice, provided that it is entirely clear from those words that, as
soon as the consumer activates the ordering button or similar function, he or she is bound by an
obligation to pay.
The Court adds that it is equally clear from the wording of Directive 2011/83 that it is the button or
similar function that must be labelled with such a formulation, meaning that only the words
that appear on that button or similar function must be taken into account for the purpose of
determining whether the trader has fulfilled its obligation to ensure that the consumer,
when placing his or her order, explicitly acknowledges that the order implies an obligation
to pay.
In those circumstances, the referring court will in particular have to verify whether the term
‘booking’ is, in the German language, both in everyday language and in the mind of the average
consumer who is reasonably well informed, and reasonably observant and circumspect,
necessarily and systematically associated with the creation of an obligation to pay. If it is not, it will
be for that court to find the expression ‘complete booking’ to be ambiguous, meaning that it cannot
be regarded as a formulation corresponding to the words ‘order with obligation to pay’ referred to in
Directive 2011/83.
NOTE: A reference for a preliminary ruling allows the courts and tribunals of the Member States, in disputes
which have been brought before them, to refer questions to the Court of Justice about the interpretation of
European Union law or the validity of a European Union act. The Court of Justice does not decide the
dispute itself. It is for the national court or tribunal to dispose of the case in accordance with the Court’s
decision, which is similarly binding on other national courts or tribunals before which a similar issue is raised.
Unofficial document for media use, not binding on the Court of Justice.
The full text of the judgment is published on the CURIA website on the day of delivery.
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