Before signing a contract, your operator must provide the information listed in articles L. 113-1, L. 222-3, and L. 222-6 of the Consumer Code. These articles describe the pre-contractual obligations which apply to all consumer contracts, including all contracts signed in-store, on-line, or by telephone.

Your operator must also provide you with the information listed in article 115 of the law from the 17 December 2021 concerning networks and electronic communications services.

Your operator must then provide you with a contractual summary, free of charge

The aforementioned pre-contractual information and the contractual summary are an integral part of the contract you sign with your operator.

When a distance contract is concluded by telephone, the professional must confirm the offer to the consumer on a durable medium. The consumer is only bound by the offer once they have signed it or accepted it in writing (link to article L. 222-4 of the Luxembourg Consumer Code).

MINIMUM CONTRACT DURATION

The length of your contractual obligations is set in the contract and must be listed in the contractual summary provided free of charge to you, by your operator, before signing the contract. The term of the contract may not exceed 24 months.

AUTOMATIC RENEWAL

When a fixed-term contract includes automatic renewal, you have the right to terminate the contract at any time with a notice period of one month after this renewal.

Before the automatic renewal of your contract, your operator must inform you at least one month in advance on a durable medium (“durable medium” refers to any instrument which allows the consumer or professional to store any information sent personally to him/her in such a way that s/he can refer to it easily in the future, during a period whose length is adapted to the purposes of which the information is intended, and which allows the identical reproduction of the stored information) of the end of your contractual obligations and of how to terminate your contract. At the same time, they must advise you about the best price they offer for their services. The operator must give you information about the best price at least once per year.

In order to make internet service offers more transparent, internet service providers (ISP) are required to include, in all contracts concerning access to mobile internet services, at least:

• its traffic management practices,
• the speeds, and
• the available remedies

The ISPs must disclose information concerning their upload and download speeds as part of their various offers.
For mobile networks, ISPs are required to list in the contract realistic numerical values concerning the maximum estimated speed and the listed speed.
Information about contract conditions

Your operator must provide you with a summary of the contract free of charge and on a concise and easily readable format, which must include the following key information:

• The name, address, and contact details of the operator as well as (if they are different) the contact details to use in the event of any claim or complaint,
• the primary characteristics of each service provided,
• the sums owed for the activation of the electronic communication service and all recurring or consumption-related costs, respectively, when the service is provided in exchange for the direct payment of a sum of money,
• the duration of the contract, and its renewal and termination conditions,
• the extent to which the products and services are designed for end users with disabilities,
• concerning internet access services, a summary of the information required according to article 4, paragraph 1, letters d) and e), of regulation (UE) 2015/2120. These concern the requirements regarding the maximum estimated and advertised speeds for mobile networks, in addition to the recourse available to consumers in the event of a permanent or recurrent discrepancy between the actual internet service performance (in terms of speed or any other service quality factor) and the advertised performance.

This contractual summary must be provided free of charge before the contract is signed. This is also the case for contracts which have been agreed remotely.
The contract will only come into force once you have confirmed your acceptance in writing, after having received the contractual summary.
The contractual summary then becomes an integral part of the contract signed by both parties, and cannot be modified, unless both parties to the contract decide expressly otherwise.

Information about the obligation for transparency in terms of the available service speeds

It terms of their business policies, operators offer their clients “subsidised” offers when they purchase a mobile phone. In return, the client subscribes to a contract with a fixed term commitment (in general, either 12 or 24 months). With this practice, the client makes a contractual commitment to the operator in exchange for a lower price on their handset.

Your operator is required to inform you one month before the date of automatic renewal that the end of the 12 or 24 month contract period is coming to an end, and explain how to terminate the contract. At this time, your operator must advise you about the best price they offer for their services.

In the event of rightful cancellation before the end of the minimum contract duration, no charges may be applied to you, except for equipment provided which you conserve, but these costs may not exceed the lowest value between the pro-rata value agreed at the time that the contract was signed and the remaining share of the service costs running until the contract expires.

Beyond the minimum contract duration, you have the right to terminate your contract at any time, following a notice period of one month.

The term “terminal equipment” covers all equipment which is directly or indirectly connected to the interface of a public telecommunications network to transmit, process, or receive information; in both cases (direct and indirect) the connection may be cabled, fibre optic, or electromagnetic; a connection is considered indirect if a device is placed between the terminal equipment and the interface with the public network.

The terminal equipment here consists of your handset, for example.

The operator must inform you of all conditions, including any fees that can be charged, in relation to the use of the terminal equipment provided.

Your operator must also disclose any restrictions concerning the use of the terminal equipment which they have supplied you and the costs relating to your terminal equipment.

The operator must also provide information on the release of the terminal equipment and any collection of the costs associated with the terminal equipment, in the event of early cancellation.

In the event of rightful cancellation before the end of the minimum contract duration, no charges may be applied to you, except for equipment provided which you conserve, but these costs may not exceed the lowest value between the pro-rata value agreed at the time that the contract was signed and the remaining share of the service costs running until the contract expires.

Find out more about the contract period

CAN I KEEP MY OLD NUMBER?

Portability of a phone number designates the possibility that the bearer of a phone number to keep it even if they change operator. The portability of a number and its later activation must be completed as quickly as possible, at a date expressly agreed with you. In any case, end users who have signed an agreement concerning the transfer of a number to a new operator must have this number activated within no more than one working day from the date agreed with the end user.

In the event of a failure in the transfer process, your former operator must reactivate your number and associated services until the number is successfully transferred. Your former operator must continue to provide their services under the same conditions until the services of the new operator are activated. In any case, the loss of service during the transfer process must not exceed one working day.

The new operator must handle the operator change and number transfer procedures.

When you terminate your contract, you retain the right to transfer your number to another operator for a period of at least one month from the date of termination, unless you waive this right.

No direct costs relating to the transfer of a phone number may be charged.

The means, time, and cost of termination must be included in the contract. Before terminating a contract, it is very important to check how and when you can terminate your contract.

Important: When you terminate a contract before the end of the minimum contract duration (1 or 2 years), except under the circumstances defined by law which allow you to cancel the law and free of charge (see point below about rightful cancellation), you will have to pay early cancellation fees, which can be very high if you cancel at the beginning of your contract.

The cancellation conditions must be stated in your contractual summary.

RIGHTFUL CANCELLATION WITHOUT CHARGE

In the event that your operator modifies the conditions of the contract:

Your contract may be modified by your operator. However, in accordance with the law, at least one month before the new contractual conditions come into effect, the operator is required to inform you of these modifications and of your right to cancel without additional charge in the event that you do not accept these new modifications.

You have the right to terminate your contract without charge for one month following notification by your operator, unless the modifications planned are solely for your benefit, are purely administrative in nature and have no negative impact on you, or are directly imposed by EU or national law.

In the event of a significant permanent or frequent discrepancy between the actual performance of an electronic communications service based on specific numbers (for example internet access services) and those listed on the contract, you have the right to terminate your contract without charge.

TERMINATION AFTER THE MINIMUM CONTRACT DURATION

Beyond the minimum contract duration, you have the right to terminate your contract at any time, following a notice period of one month.

Find out more about the contract period