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Under existing law, the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection undertakes actions when collective consumer interests are breached. In individual matters, consumers may obtain free legal advice from their local consumer ombudsman or at one of the State-funded consumer organisations (the Polish Consumer Federation, the Association of Polish Consumers).
Consumers may also opt for alternative dispute resolution provided by the network of consumer courts of arbitration. They exist at Voivodship Inspectorates of the Trade Inspection. Currently, there are 16 consumer courts of arbitration with 15 branch offices. The decisions of the consumer courts, as well as settlements reached in them, are equally binding as the judgements of common courts of law, once a common court of law has confirmed their enforceability. However, the decision to use arbitration must be made by both of the parties to the dispute. Consumer courts may only hear B2C disputes resulting from contracts of sales and provision of services, and only as regards property rights. The consumer courts at the Voivodship Inspectorates of the Trade Inspection can decide cases where tha value of the object in dispute does not exceed PLN 10 thousand. Only the Consumer Court in Warsaw can hear cases regardless of the value of the object in dispute.
A case may be filed to the court of arbitration not only by the consumer but also by the enterprise, a consumer organisation, or the local consumer ombudsman. Each of the parties may have an attorney, who does not have to be an advocate or legal advisor. The hearings are open to the public and their minutes taken. The decision is made by majority vote and a notice thereof, together with the grounds of the decision, is send to the parties within 14 days. The costs of the proceedings are covered by the losing party. The presiding judge may also exempt the parties from paying the costs altogether.
In matters related to the provision of telecommunication services (for example consumer disputes with telephony operators) or postal services, the case may be filed to the consumer court of arbitration also by the President of the Office of Electronic Communication (UKE). Consumer disputes with banks (such as financial claims arising from non-performance or undue performance of banking services) may, in turn, be solved with the support of the Banking Ombudsman, an institution operating at the Polish Bank Association. Disputes with insurance companies, pension fund managing companies, the Insurance Guarantee Fund and the Polish Motor Insurers' Bureau are decided by the Court of Arbitration at the Insurance Ombudsman. In disputes with fuel gas and energy suppliers, consumers may seek the help of the specialised ombudsman institution set up by the Energy Regulatory Office.
Consumers may also obtain information about consumer rights in the European Union, legal assistance (formulation of complaints, sending documents) and organisational support in cross-border disputes at the European Consumer Centre.