A complaints procedure for Slovakia and Czechia: where the two regimes diverge

The Slovak and Czech rules on liability for defects in sales to consumers derive from the same European directive and therefore share the same skeleton: two years for a defect to appear, first repair or replacement at the buyer’s choice, then a price reduction or withdrawal from the contract. The differences lie in the details that decide an individual complaint, namely by when the customer must report the defect, who proves what, and how many days the seller has to deal with it. A complaints procedure translated from Slovak into Czech will not capture those differences.

Which law applies to a complaint

The law governing a consumer contract is determined by Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 (Rome I). Where the trader pursues activities in the country of the consumer’s habitual residence or by any means directs such activities to that country, and the contract falls within the scope of those activities, the contract is governed by the law of that country. The parties may choose another law, but the choice may not deprive the consumer of the protection afforded by provisions of his home law that cannot be derogated from by agreement. A Slovak e-shop that targets Czech customers, for example through a Czech language version, prices in crowns and delivery to Czechia, must therefore generally reckon with the Czech complaints regime, even if its terms choose Slovak law.

The burden of proof: the whole period versus one year

In Slovakia, the presumption in the buyer’s favour covers the entire period of liability:

If a defect appears before the expiry of the period under Section 619(1) to (4), it is presumed to be a defect which the item already had at the time of delivery. This does not apply if the contrary is proved or if that presumption is incompatible with the nature of the item or of the defect.

— Section 620(1) of the Civil Code (unofficial English translation)

In Czechia the presumption is shorter. Under Section 2161(5) of Act No. 89/2012 Sb., only a defect appearing within one year of taking delivery is regarded as having existed on taking delivery, unless the nature of the item or of the defect precludes this. With a defect appearing in the second year, a Slovak seller must therefore prove that the defect was not present on delivery, whereas in Czechia the presumption under Section 2161(5) no longer applies and proof generally remains with the buyer. For how support handles the rejection of complaints, this is one of the most significant differences.

Reporting a defect: two months versus no sanction

A Slovak buyer may exercise rights arising from liability for defects only if he notified the defect within two months of discovering it (Section 621(3) of the Civil Code). Czech law imposes no such sanction on a buyer in a shop: the court will uphold the right arising from the defect even where it was not notified without undue delay after the buyer could have discovered it with sufficient care (Section 2165(3) of Act No. 89/2012 Sb.). The sentence about the two-month period therefore does not belong in the Czech version of the procedure.

The time limit for handling

In Slovakia the seller must repair or replace the item within a reasonable period, at most 30 days from notification of the defect, longer only for an objective reason beyond its control (Section 623(4)), and it states that period as early as the confirmation of notification of the defect (Section 622(3)). Czech law counts the period differently and allows it to be extended by agreement. Under Section 19(3) of Act No. 634/1992 Sb., a complaint including remedying the defect must be dealt with and the consumer informed of this no later than 30 days from the day the complaint was made, unless the seller agrees a longer period with the consumer. Within that period, therefore, the customer must also receive the information about how the complaint was dealt with.

Once the period expires without result, in both countries the consumer may seek a price reduction or withdraw from the contract (Section 624(1) of the Slovak Civil Code; Section 19(4) of the Czech Consumer Protection Act). The details of the Slovak period are discussed in within how many days a complaint must be handled.

Extension after repair and confirmations

For contracts concluded from 31 July 2026, the Slovak period of liability for defects is extended by 12 months after the first repair (Section 619(4)) and the seller must inform the buyer of this before remedying the defect; we discuss the change in the article complaints after the amendment of 31 July 2026. The Czech Civil Code, as in force on 12 September 2026, contains no such extension; under it, the period for notifying a defect merely does not run while the buyer cannot use the item because of a properly notified defect (Section 2165(4)). The documentation differs too: Czech law requires a confirmation on making a complaint, stating the date, the content, the requested manner of handling and the consumer’s contact details, and then a confirmation of the date and manner of handling, or written reasons for rejection (Section 19(2) and (5) of Act No. 634/1992 Sb.). A member of staff responsible for handling complaints must also be present on the premises throughout opening hours (Section 19(1)). The Slovak Civil Code provides for a written confirmation of notification of a defect with the period for remedying it, and a written statement of reasons where the seller rejects liability (Section 622(3) and (4)).

Overview of the differences

	Slovakia	Czechia
Period for a defect to appear	two years from delivery (Section 619(1))	two years from taking delivery (Section 2165(1))
Second-hand item	by agreement, at least one year (Section 619(3))	by agreement, down to one year (Section 2168)
Presumption of a defect on delivery	the whole period of liability (Section 620(1))	one year from taking delivery (Section 2161(5))
Reporting a defect	within two months of discovery (Section 621(3))	the court upholds the right even on later notification (Section 2165(3))
Period for remedying a defect	at most 30 days from notification, longer only for an objective reason (Section 623(4))	30 days from making the complaint, longer by agreement (Section 19(3) of Act No. 634/1992 Sb.)
Extension after repair	by 12 months after the first repair, for contracts from 31 July 2026 (Section 619(4))	not provided for; the period merely does not run while the item cannot be used (Section 2165(4))

What this means for the complaints procedure

The process can be the same in both countries: the same form, the same support steps, the same record-keeping system. The legal text and the template confirmations, however, must be two, and support must know which one it is following, generally according to the country in which the customer has his habitual residence and into which you were selling the goods. We prepare both the Slovak and the Czech legal version with a single process logic through our complaints procedure service. If you already have both versions, we will verify as part of a review of terms and conditions whether the Czech version is not simply a translation of the Slovak one. The costs associated with a complaint in both countries are discussed in who pays the postage on a complaint.