The Norwegian Consumer Ombudsman ( no, Forbrukerombudet) is a government-appointed

ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

for consumer affairs. The office was established in 1973 with

Inger Louise Valle Inger Louise Valle (28 November 1921 – 21 May 2006) was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party, particularly noted for her efforts to reform the Norwegian penal system. She is the mother of professor Jan Grund. Biography She represented ...

as the first holder. The office of the consumer ombudsman sees to it that the

marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...

goods In economics, goods are items that satisfy human wants and provide utility, for example, to a consumer making a purchase of a satisfying product. A common distinction is made between goods which are transferable, and services, which are not ...

and services is done in accordance with marketing law. Specifically, the office acts in the interests of consumers to seek to prevent market abuses in conflict with the provisions stipulated in or pursuant to the Norwegian Marketing Control Act. The Consumer Ombudsman, acting on her or his own initiative or on the basis of communications from others, encourages all businesspersons to conduct their activities in accordance with the provisions of the Act. The Ombudsman also seeks to ensure that terms and conditions are not used in any way that may harm consumers. The office of the Consumer Ombudsman received attention internationally since it ruled that the iTunes Music Store's contract terms violates Norwegian consumer and marketing law. The ombudsman handles around 8,500 cases each year, both on its own initiative and stemming from complaints from consumer and business-holders.
Official website, 'About Us' section (in Norwegian) Decisions by the ombudsman can be appealed to the Norwegian Market Council.

Bjørn Erik Thon Bjørn Erik Thon (born 6 February 1964) is a Norwegian jurist and ombudsman. Career He graduated as cand.jur. in 1989. From 1999 to 2000, during the first cabinet Bondevik Thon worked as a political advisor in the Ministry of Justice and the Po ...

led the office of the Consumer Ombudsman from 2000 to 2010, and was succeeded by Gry Nergård. Her term of office lasts for six years.

References

External links

The Consumer Ombudsman and the Market Council
Consumer Ombudsman Consumer 1973 establishments in Norway Organizations established in 1973 Ombudsman posts Consumer rights agencies {{norway-gov-stub