The Consumentenbond (CB, "Consumers association") is a Dutch non-profit organization that promotes

consumer protection Consumer protection is the practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public, against unfair practices in the marketplace. Consumer protection measures are often established by law. Such laws are intended to prevent business ...

History

The Consumentenbond was established in 1953. As of 1997, it had 650,000 members and represented one out of nine Dutch families, which made it the

consumer organization Consumer organizations are advocacy groups that seek to protect people from corporate abuse like unsafe products, predatory lending, false advertising, astroturfing and pollution. Consumer Organizations may operate via protests, litigation, Adver ...

with the highest level of penetration in any nation. Just as other membership-based organisations, the number of members has declined significantly since the beginning of this century. For the last five years the membership count stabilized on or around 480,000 members. The name of the Consumentenbond is sometimes shortened as "CB". In 1960, the Consumentenbond was one of the five founders of what is now called

Consumers International Consumers International is the membership organization for consumer groups around the world. Founded on 1 April 1960, it has over 250 member organizations in 120 countries. Its head office is situated in London, England, and has numerous region ...

. Until 1993, the headquarters of the organization was hosted in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

. The Consumentenbond has, with Consumers International, emphasized the need to assist consumers in

developing countries A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed Secondary sector of the economy, industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. ...

. In 1962, the Consumentenbond participated in the foundation of the

European Consumers' Bureau The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC (), from the French name ''Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs'', "European Bureau of Consumers' Unions") is an umbrella consumers' group, founded in 1962. Based in Brussels, Belgium, it brings to ...

(BEUC). In 1970, the Consumentenbond along with representatives of commercial industries established the Foundation for Resolution of Disputes (SGC), which was an organization which had the mission to address consumer complaints for member companies in those industries. Whenever a consumer had a complaint, it would be heard by a panel consisting of a chairman with legal expertise, a representative of the industry, and a representative selected by Consumentenbond. In 1974, the Consumentenbond and Konsumenten Kontakt (another Dutch consumer organisation) used government funding to establish the Foundation for Scientific Research on Consumer Affairs (SWOKA) to guide government policy.

References

External links

{{Consumers International Consumer organisations in the Netherlands Members of Consumers International