Since 2016, the Service has been intervening to settle disputes between consumers and professionals through mediation.
Due to the coronavirus crisis, the year 2020 started at a slow pace, but in the end, Claude Fellens's team recorded 545 requests, an increase of 18.5% compared to 2019. Of these, 190 cases were handled internally by the Service.
Participation in mediation is voluntary for both parties. In only 49.4% of cases do both parties participate. Fellens regrets this, but often the managers of the company concerned simply did not have enough time or did not take the invitation seriously.
In almost 92% of the cases, mediation led to an agreement, says Fellens.
Minister of the Economy Franz Fayot stressed the importance of this mediator, who does not act on a legal level, but on an interpersonal level.
