39 - Humanoid Robots and Consumer Law and Policy

Summary

This chapter assesses EU Consumer law and Policy in the light of consumers’ increasing interaction with humanoid robots. Amidst the plethora of benefits that humanoid robots can bring to consumers, they can also challenge the application of consumer protection principles. The biggest problems lie in the areas of protection of the weaker party, consumer autonomy, nondiscrimination, and privacy. Consumers may face difficulties ranging from exposure to unfair commercial practices, difficulties in exercising their rights under the Consumer Rights Directive, in claiming damages for AI-related losses under the Product Liability Directive, in exercising the rights – for example, to consent, to be forgotten, to be informed, not to be profiled – under the General Data Protection Regulation, and in avoiding being discriminated by credit scoring systems under the Consumer Credit Directive. The chapter explores the sufficiency of EU legislation to tackle the wide range of challenges and proposes targeted regulatory action. The rationale behind addressing these issues is to strike a balance between consumer protection and innovation in robotics.