Consumers are increasingly turning to the Belgian Ministry of Economy to report issues such as misleading practices, fraud and unsafe products.
In 2025, the Ministry of Economy received almost 39,000 such reports, a sixth (17%) more than the previous year. This is according to the first ‘Belgian Consumer Protection Overview’ report, published by the agency on Thursday.
Of the reports, 33,035 concerned potential misleading practices, fraud and scams.
Specifically, these mainly involved fake online shops, unwanted telephone calls and undelivered products in online sales, but consumers also reported issues such as problems with the statutory warranty or after-sales service. The ministry reports that it has blocked around 1,300 untrustworthy websites since the start of 2025.
However, "the fastest-growing form of scam" is the so-called subscription trap, says the Ministry of Economy. The number of reports increased sixfold: from 166 in 2024 to 993 in 2025.
With such a "subscription trap", people think they are buying a one-off service (such as creating a CV or downloading a manual), but afterwards it turns out they are stuck with a monthly subscription that is collected via direct debit. ‘The websites appear to be local, but they are usually run by foreign companies,’ the ministry states.
In addition, the government agency received 5,580 reports concerning dangerous products and services. Consumers mainly reported potential issues with electronic devices, playgrounds, lifts, cosmetics and toys.
The number of reports was a fifth higher than in 2024, which, according to the ministry, "can be partly explained by greater visibility of the reporting channels, but also by increased vigilance among both consumers and economic operators".
"The Belgian Consumer Protection Overview gives us a very clear picture of what people encounter on a daily basis. These are real frustrations people face: parcels that don’t arrive, misleading online shops, or being stuck with subscriptions you never wanted," says Minister for Consumer Protection Rob Beenders (Vooruit) in a press release.
He is calling on people to always report problems via the ConsumerConnect platform. "The more we know about what is going wrong, the faster the economic inspectorate can intervene and protect others from the same problems."
In addition to reports, the Ministry of Economy also receives many requests for information. There were more than 16,600 of these in 2025. They are mainly concerned about the statutory guarantee, problems with online purchases and deliveries, suspicious phone calls, messages and websites, and finally invoicing and payment reminders, it is reported.
The Ministry of Economy is organising an e-commerce awareness week starting on 18 May.
"The aim is to inform consumers about their online rights and to guide businesses in complying with their obligations," it states. This guidance for businesses is necessary, as checks on Belgian online shops reveal that 97 per cent are not fully compliant.
In most cases, information for consumers is missing (such as warranty details, the right of withdrawal or payment terms) or the identity or address of the online shop is not clear enough. ‘Most infringements are due to a lack of knowledge of the extensive regulations,’ says the ministry.
