Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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82. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the consumer rights that apply to gift vouchers; his plans to introduce new rules concerning the period of time for which such vouchers must remain valid; his plans to strengthen consumer rights in this area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21208/15]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Gift cards are subject to general consumer protection legislation, in particular the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act 2007 on unfair, misleading and aggressive commercial practices and of the European Communities (Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts) Regulations 1995. Some gift cards, such as the One4all card issued by the Gift Voucher Shop or the gift cards issued by some shopping centres, are subject also to the European Communities (Electronic Money Regulations) 2011 enacted by the Minister for Finance and enforced by the Central Bank.

My Department’s Scheme of a proposed Consumer Rights Bill which I launched on Monday includes a number of proposals aimed at strengthening the rights of consumers who purchase gift cards. The Scheme provides that contracts for the supply of a gift card or voucher must not include a term that makes the card or voucher subject to an expiry date. Traders would also be required to inform consumers of any charges applying to a gift card, or any restrictions on the use of the card, before the consumer was bound by the contract. The charges applying to gift cards would also be assessable for fairness under the provisions of the Scheme on unfair contract terms. I am prepared to consider additional protections for consumers in this area if the consultation on the Scheme of the Bill shows a need for them.