About Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband

The Federation of German Consumer Organisations (Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband – vzbv) is the strong voice of all consumers in Germany – independent of their origin or living conditions. vzbv is advocating for a just and sustainable society and economy, where policy-making focuses on people’s needs. As the umbrella organisation for the 16 German consumer associations, one in each of Germany’s federal states, and for 29 other member organisations, vzbv channels the strengths of its members to promote strong consumer protection. Our work is backed by a number of individuals and nine organisations who are supporting members.

• vzbv represents the interests of consumers vis-à-vis policymakers, companies and other stakeholders.
• vzbv detects structural shortcomings in consumer policy, identifies consumer problems, proposes solutions and fights for their implementation. Consumers should be able to trust that the product they acquire is the best and safest fit for them.
• vzbv advocates for the use of a nuanced “average consumer” model in policy-making and as a basis for court rulings.

• vzbv is a not-for-profit organisation, politically impartial, and solely committed to representing the interests of consumers.
• vzbv recognises that the needs of consumers are diverse. Hence, in its work for consumers, vzbv does not exclude specific types or groups of consumers.
• Our “Empowering Consumers in Urban Areas” project, the Food Transparency project and the provision of energy advice through German consumer associations are key elements of our work.
• vzbv is funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection, through project funding and member subscriptions.
• vzbv operates both at European and international level and has an office in Brussels. vzbv is a member of the umbrella organisation of European consumer organisations, Bureau Européen des Unions de Consommateurs (BEUC), and of Consumers International (CI), an international federation of consumer organisations.
• vzbv is a member of “Initiative Transparente Zivilgesellschaft (ITZ)”. In this context, vzbv is obliged to inform the public about what goals it tries to achieve, where the funding comes from, how the money is spent and who the decision-makers are that vzbv targets.

vzbv was established in 2000 as the result of the merger of three federal consumer organisations. One of its predecessors, AgV, was established already in 1953 by welfare organisations, women’s organisations and consumer cooperatives. In the same year, the first regional consumer association (Verbraucherzentrale) was founded.