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PARALLEL TEXTS
Secondo l’avvocato generale Melchior Wathelet, gli Stati membri possono vietare, in via generale e senza distinguere tra i diversi strumenti di pagamento, l'addebito di spese amministrative da parte del beneficiario del pagamento
Inglese tratto da:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-140_en.htm
Italiano tratto da:
http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_CJE-13-140_it.htm
Data documento: 24-10-2013
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According to Advocate General Melchior Wathelet, Member States may prohibit generally a payee from levying handling charges, without a distinction being drawn between different payment instruments
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Secondo l’avvocato generale Melchior Wathelet, gli Stati membri possono vietare, in via generale e senza distinguere tra i diversi strumenti di pagamento, l'addebito di spese amministrative da parte del beneficiario del pagamento
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That prohibition may also be applied to mobile phone companies
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Tale divieto può essere applicato anche alle società di telefonia mobile
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According to the directive on payment services, Member States may prohibit or limit the practice of surcharging, by which payee undertakings impose charges on their customers for the use of a given payment instrument.
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Secondo la direttiva sui servizi di pagamento gli Stati membri possono vietare o limitare la pratica della maggiorazione, mediante la quale le imprese beneficiarie di pagamenti addebitano spese ai loro clienti nel momento in cui pagano e per l’utilizzo di un determinato strumento di pagamento.
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That practice seeks to ensure that customers bear the cost of using, in particular, credit or debit cards.
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Tale pratica mira a far gravare sul cliente-pagatore il costo dell’utilizzo delle carte di credito o delle carte di debito.
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In Austria, payees are prohibited generally from levying handling charges, without a distinction being drawn between different payment instruments.
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In Austria l’imposizione di spese amministrative da parte dei beneficiari è vietata, in via generale e senza distinguere tra i diversi strumenti di pagamento.
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However, T-Mobile Austria, a provider of mobile telephone services in Austria, provides in its general conditions for the imposition of a service charge in cases where customers pay their bills by means of a cash payment form or by telebanking.
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La T-Mobile Austria, uno degli operatori di telefonia mobile presenti in Austria, prevede nelle sue condizioni generali la fatturazione di spese di gestione qualora il cliente paghi la fattura mediante bonifico bancario in forma cartacea o via Internet.
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Consequently, customers who apply for and use the ‘Call Europe’ tariff must pay a surcharge of €3 if they opt for ‘payment other than by direct debit or credit card’, which includes payment by means of a cash payment form or via online banking (‘Telebanking’).
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Così, quando un cliente sottoscrive e utilizza la tariffa «Call Europe», deve pagare un sovrapprezzo pari a EUR 3 se sceglie un «pagamento senza addebito sul conto bancario o sulla carta di credito» nel quale rientra in particolare il pagamento mediante bonifico bancario in forma cartacea o telematica («online banking»).
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The Verein für Konsumenteninformation, an Austrian consumer association, considers that practice to be contrary to the general prohibition of surcharging in Austria.
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Il Verein für Konsumenteninformation, un'associazione austriaca di consumatori, considera questa prassi contraria al divieto generale di maggiorazioni applicabile in Austria.
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The association therefore brought an action before the Austrian courts with a view to restraining T-Mobile Austria from, first, including the contested clause in the contracts into which it enters with its customers and, secondly, making use of that clause in relation to existing contracts.
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Ha pertanto agito dinanzi ai giudici austriaci onde inibire alla T-Mobile Austria di inserire la clausola controversa nei contratti che essa stipula con i suoi clienti e di avvalersene per i contratti esistenti.
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Since the first-instance court and the appeal court upheld that application, T-Mobile Austria appealed to the Oberster Gerichtshof (Supreme Court, Austria).
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Poiché nei primi due gradi di giudizio tali domande sono state accolte, la T-Mobile Austria ha adito l’Oberster Gerichtshof (Corte suprema, Austria).
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The Oberster Gerichtshof seeks to determine, first, whether the directive, and more specifically the power that it gives to Member States to prohibit surcharging, applies only to payment service providers, as T-Mobile Austria claims, or also to mobile phone companies.
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La Corte suprema austriaca chiede alla Corte, anzitutto, se la direttiva, e più precisamente la facoltà che essa offre agli Stati membri di vietare la maggiorazione, si applichi - come sostiene la T-Mobile Austria - unicamente ai prestatori di servizi di pagamento, oppure anche alle società di telefonia mobile.
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Next, the Oberster Gerichtshof asks whether a credit transfer constitutes a payment instrument within the meaning of the directive, with the result that such a transfer is covered by that power.
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Inoltre, la Corte suprema chiede se un bonifico di fondi costituisca uno strumento di pagamento ai sensi della direttiva, cosicché siffatto bonifico possa essere oggetto di divieto.
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Finally, that court seeks to establish whether the general prohibition of surcharging in Austria is in compliance with the directive.
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Chiede inoltre se il divieto generale di maggiorazione applicabile in Austria sia conforme alla direttiva.
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In today’s Opinion, Advocate General Melchior Wathelet considers, first, that the power to prohibit surcharging given to Member States by the directive applies to the contractual relationship between a mobile phone operator, as the payee, and its customer (the consumer), as the payer.
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Nelle sue conclusioni odierne, l'avvocato generale Melchior Wathelet ritiene, innanzi tutto, che la facoltà che la direttiva offre agli Stati membri di vietare la maggiorazione si applichi al rapporto contrattuale tra un operatore di telefonia mobile quale beneficiario di un pagamento e il suo cliente (quale consumatore, pagatore).
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Secondly, he finds that a credit transfer initiated either by a payment form bearing the payer’s handwritten signature or by telebanking must be considered a ‘payment instrument’ within the meaning of the directive.
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Egli trae poi la conclusione che un trasferimento di denaro («credit transfer»), sia esso disposto mediante un bollettino munito di firma autografa del pagatore o tramite l’utilizzo dell’online banking («servizio bancario telematico»), deve essere considerato uno «strumento di pagamento» ai sensi della direttiva.
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Finally, the Advocate General takes the view that the directive does not preclude the application of national provisions, such as the Austrian provision at issue, which prohibit generally a payee from levying handling charges, without a distinction being drawn between different payment instruments.
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Infine, l’avvocato generale è dell’avviso che la direttiva non osta all’applicazione di disposizioni nazionali - come quella austriaca - che vietano, in via generale e senza distinguere tra i diversi strumenti di pagamento, l’imposizione di spese amministrative da parte del beneficiario.
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The directive confers upon the Member States a broad discretion as to whether and how they wish to exercise the power to prohibit or limit surcharging in order to encourage competition, promote the use of efficient payment instruments or prevent unfair pricing.
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Infatti, la direttiva riconosce agli Stati membri un ampio margine di discrezionalità per decidere se e come essi intendano avvalersi della facoltà di vietare o limitare la maggiorazione al fine di incoraggiare la concorrenza, promuovere l’uso di strumenti di pagamento efficaci e prevenire abusi in materia tariffaria.
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Although it is for the Oberster Gerichtshof to determine whether the general prohibition of surcharging applicable in Austria ‘took sufficient account’ of those considerations of general interest, it appears that the Austrian legislature respected the limits to that discretion.
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Sebbene spetti alla Corte Suprema austriaca valutare se il divieto generale di maggiorazione applicabile in Austria abbia sufficientemente «tenuto conto» di tali considerazioni di interesse generale, sembra che il legislatore austriaco abbia rispettato i limiti di detto margine di discrezionalità.
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In that regard, the Advocate General notes, inter alia, that2 the practice of surcharging has often led to abusive pricing by certain traders, namely where surcharges are disproportionately high in comparison with the cost incurred by the trader for the transaction, particularly where consumers could not avoid those surcharges by choosing another payment instrument.
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A questo riguardo l'avvocato generale rileva, in particolare, che la pratica della maggiorazione conduceva spesso ad abusi in materia di tariffe da parte di taluni commercianti, cioè a spese sproporzionatamente elevate rispetto ai costi sostenuti dal commerciante per concludere la transazione, in particolare quando i consumatori non potevano evitare tali costi aggiuntivi ricorrendo a un diverso strumento di pagamento.
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In addition, it appears that surcharging was also used to generate higher income rather than to recover from the payer the actual cost that the payment service provider charged the payee when a payment instrument was used.
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Inoltre, la maggiorazione era anche utilizzata per incrementare le entrate, piuttosto che per ripercuotere sul pagatore i costi realmente addebitati dal prestatore di servizi di pagamento al beneficiario in occasione dell’utilizzo di uno strumento di pagamento.
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The power simply to prohibit surcharging was given to Member States by the directive in order to prevent abuses of that kind and to overcome the enormous difficulty of establishing a true balance between the actual costs and the costs.
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È per evitare tali abusi e per superare le notevoli difficoltà che si presentano nello stabilire con precisione la corrispondenza tra costi reali e spese richieste, che la direttiva accorda agli Stati membri la facoltà di proibire tout court la maggiorazione.
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As regards the encouragement of competition, Advocate General Wathelet notes that the general prohibition of surcharging increases price transparency, by preventing an undertaking, in the case where a given payment instrument is used, from charging a final price which is higher than that indicated in its letter or communication, which the customer compares with other price offers.
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Quanto all'incentivazione della concorrenza, l’avvocato generale Wathelet osserva che il divieto generale di maggiorazione incrementa la trasparenza delle tariffe, in quanto impedisce che un’impresa esiga dal cliente, in caso di utilizzo di un determinato strumento di pagamento, un prezzo finale superiore a quello che essa indica nella sua comunicazione e che il cliente confronta con altre offerte tariffarie.
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According to the Advocate General, the fact must not be overlooked that both the directive and Austrian law permit T-Mobile Austria to offer reductions to customers to encourage them to use payment instruments which, from its point of view, are more efficient.
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Secondo l'avvocato generale, non si deve dimenticare che sia la direttiva, sia il diritto austriaco autorizzano la T-Mobile Austria a proporre ai suoi clienti riduzioni per incentivarli a utilizzare strumenti di pagamento, dal suo punto di vista, più efficaci.
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In addition, the Advocate General takes the view that it is not appropriate to accede to T-Mobile Austria’s request for temporal limits to be imposed on the effects of the judgment to be delivered by the Court in this case, should the Court find that a credit transfer must be considered a payment instrument within the meaning of the directive and that the directive does not preclude a general prohibition of surcharging.
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Peraltro, l'avvocato generale ritiene che non si debba accogliere la domanda della T-Mobile Austria di limitare nel tempo gli effetti della sentenza che la Corte pronuncerà in questa causa, nell'eventualità che la Corte tragga la conclusione che il bonifico deve considerarsi uno strumento di pagamento ai sensi della direttiva e che quest'ultima non osta a un divieto generale di maggiorazione.
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The conditions for such a limitation to be applied are not satisfied.
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Infatti, non ricorrono le condizioni necessarie per tale limitazione.
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In particular, T-Mobile Austria failed to put forward any data which would have enabled the Court to consider whether it actually risks incurring serious economic repercussions should the Court come to such a conclusion.
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In particolare, la T-Mobile Austria non ha presentato dati che consentano alla Corte di valutare se essa rischi effettivamente gravi ripercussioni economiche nell'ipotesi in cui la Corte giunga a siffatta conclusione.
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NOTE:
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IMPORTANTE:
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The Advocate General’s Opinion is not binding on the Court of Justice.
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Le conclusioni dell'avvocato generale non vincolano la Corte di giustizia.
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It is the role of the Advocates General to propose to the Court, in complete independence, a legal solution to the cases for which they are responsible.
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Il compito dell'avvocato generale consiste nel proporre alla Corte, in piena indipendenza, una soluzione giuridica nella causa per la quale è stato designato.
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The Judges of the Court are now beginning their deliberations in this case.
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I giudici della Corte cominciano adesso a deliberare in questa causa.
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Judgment will be given at a later date.
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La sentenza sarà pronunciata in una data successiva.
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NOTE:
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IMPORTANTE:
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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.
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Il rinvio pregiudiziale consente ai giudici degli Stati membri, nell'ambito di una controversia della quale sono investiti, di interpellare la Corte in merito all’interpretazione del diritto dell’Unione o alla validità di un atto dell’Unione.
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The Court of Justice does not decide the dispute itself.
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La Corte non risolve la controversia nazionale.
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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. |
Spetta al giudice nazionale risolvere la causa conformemente alla decisione della CorteTale decisione vincola egualmente gli altri giudici nazionali ai quali venga sottoposto un problema simile. |
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According to Advocate General Melchior Wathelet, Member States may
prohibit generally a payee from levying handling charges, without a distinction
being drawn between different payment instruments
That prohibition may also be applied to mobile phone companies
According to the directive on payment services, Member States may prohibit or
limit the practice of surcharging, by which payee undertakings impose charges on
their customers for the use of a given payment instrument.
That practice seeks to ensure that customers bear the cost of using, in
particular, credit or debit cards.
In Austria, payees are prohibited generally from levying handling charges,
without a distinction being drawn between different payment instruments.
However, T-Mobile Austria, a provider of mobile telephone services in
Austria, provides in its general conditions for the imposition of a service
charge in cases where customers pay their bills by means of a cash payment form
or by telebanking.
Consequently, customers who apply for and use the ‘Call Europe’ tariff must
pay a surcharge of €3 if they opt for ‘payment other than by direct debit or
credit card’, which includes payment by means of a cash payment form or via
online banking (‘Telebanking’).
The Verein für Konsumenteninformation, an Austrian consumer association,
considers that practice to be contrary to the general prohibition of surcharging
in Austria.
The association therefore brought an action before the Austrian courts with a
view to restraining T-Mobile Austria from, first, including the contested clause
in the contracts into which it enters with its customers and, secondly, making
use of that clause in relation to existing contracts.
Since the first-instance court and the appeal court upheld that application,
T-Mobile Austria appealed to the Oberster Gerichtshof (Supreme Court, Austria).
The Oberster Gerichtshof seeks to determine, first, whether the directive,
and more specifically the power that it gives to Member States to prohibit
surcharging, applies only to payment service providers, as T-Mobile Austria
claims, or also to mobile phone companies.
Next, the Oberster Gerichtshof asks whether a credit transfer constitutes a
payment instrument within the meaning of the directive, with the result that
such a transfer is covered by that power.
Finally, that court seeks to establish whether the general prohibition of
surcharging in Austria is in compliance with the directive.
In today’s Opinion, Advocate General Melchior Wathelet considers, first, that
the power to prohibit surcharging given to Member States by the directive
applies to the contractual relationship between a mobile phone operator, as the
payee, and its customer (the consumer), as the payer.
Secondly, he finds that a credit transfer initiated either by a payment form
bearing the payer’s handwritten signature or by telebanking must be considered a
‘payment instrument’ within the meaning of the directive.
Finally, the Advocate General takes the view that the directive does not
preclude the application of national provisions, such as the Austrian provision
at issue, which prohibit generally a payee from levying handling charges,
without a distinction being drawn between different payment instruments.
The directive confers upon the Member States a broad discretion as to whether
and how they wish to exercise the power to prohibit or limit surcharging in
order to encourage competition, promote the use of efficient payment instruments
or prevent unfair pricing.
Although it is for the Oberster Gerichtshof to determine whether the general
prohibition of surcharging applicable in Austria ‘took sufficient account’ of
those considerations of general interest, it appears that the Austrian
legislature respected the limits to that discretion.
In that regard, the Advocate General notes, inter alia, that2 the practice of
surcharging has often led to abusive pricing by certain traders, namely where
surcharges are disproportionately high in comparison with the cost incurred by
the trader for the transaction, particularly where consumers could not avoid
those surcharges by choosing another payment instrument.
In addition, it appears that surcharging was also used to generate higher
income rather than to recover from the payer the actual cost that the payment
service provider charged the payee when a payment instrument was used.
The power simply to prohibit surcharging was given to Member States by the
directive in order to prevent abuses of that kind and to overcome the enormous
difficulty of establishing a true balance between the actual costs and the costs
.
As regards the encouragement of competition, Advocate General Wathelet notes
that the general prohibition of surcharging increases price transparency, by
preventing an undertaking, in the case where a given payment instrument is used,
from charging a final price which is higher than that indicated in its letter or
communication, which the customer compares with other price offers.
According to the Advocate General, the fact must not be overlooked that both
the directive and Austrian law permit T-Mobile Austria to offer reductions to
customers to encourage them to use payment instruments which, from its point of
view, are more efficient.
In addition, the Advocate General takes the view that it is not appropriate
to accede to T-Mobile Austria’s request for temporal limits to be imposed on the
effects of the judgment to be delivered by the Court in this case, should the
Court find that a credit transfer must be considered a payment instrument within
the meaning of the directive and that the directive does not preclude a general
prohibition of surcharging.
The conditions for such a limitation to be applied are not satisfied.
In particular, T-Mobile Austria failed to put forward any data which would
have enabled the Court to consider whether it actually risks incurring serious
economic repercussions should the Court come to such a conclusion.
NOTE:
The Advocate General’s Opinion is not binding on the Court of Justice.
It is the role of the Advocates General to propose to the Court, in complete
independence, a legal solution to the cases for which they are responsible.
The Judges of the Court are now beginning their deliberations in this case.
Judgment will be given at a later date.
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.
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