What this guidebook covers
UOKiK (the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection) has brought charges against a dealer that added a preparation fee of about PLN 1,300 and added insurance to contracts. A practice that harms the collective interests of consumers can be fined up to 10% of turnover, and UOKiK can order refunds to every customer. In 2025 UOKiK issued 900 decisions, with PLN 545 million in fines for breaches of consumer rights.
This guidebook covers 6 consumer standards for showrooms and used car lots, with 14 checkpoints: the full price with no hidden fees, promotions showing the lowest price from the last 30 days, honest vehicle descriptions, complaints handled by law, 14 days to withdraw from distance sales, and no sales pressure. The guidebook PDF is in Polish.
The 6 consumer protection standards
| Code | Standard | Ideal fix time |
|---|---|---|
| KSM-01 | Full price, no hidden fees | 72 hours |
| KSM-02 | Promotions with the 30-day lowest price | 72 hours |
| KSM-03 | Honest vehicle description | 72 hours |
| KSM-04 | Complaints handled by law | 72 hours |
| KSM-05 | Distance sales: 14 days to withdraw | 7 days |
| KSM-06 | No sales pressure | 72 hours |
How to run a Polish consumer protection audit, step by step
- Confirm what applies. Sales to consumers are covered; fleet (B2B) sales mostly fall outside consumer law, but sole traders can have consumer rights.
- Walk the site, standard by standard. Score each of the 14 checkpoints Pass, Fail or N/A. N/A only where the standard rules it out, with the reason recorded. Compare 10 adverts with the signed contracts, check 10 promotions and 5 complaints, and send a mystery shopper to the showroom.
- Capture the evidence. A pass counts only with proof captured at the time of the audit: adverts and contracts, the fee list, promotion screenshots, vehicle history reports, the complaints log and online sale files.
- Give every fail an owner and a fix time. Record what you saw and who owns the fix. Each standard carries an ideal fix time, from 72 hours to 7 days, counted from audit submission (see the table above).
- Fix it, then prove it. The site fixes the cause and uploads proof of closure; the auditor checks the proof before closing the finding.
- Re-check at the next audit. Confirm closed findings stay closed, and look for the same fail at your other sites so one gap doesn't repeat across the network.
Who this guidebook is for
- Boards: the risk measured in turnover
- Sales and marketing: what every price and advert must include
- Auditors: adverts and contracts to check
A reference document, not legal advice. Fines and rules change: check the current text with the regulator or your legal adviser before acting.
