The percentage of Croatians buying online is still low, 23%, as against the 45% average in the European Union. However, shopping via the Internet in Croatia leaped from a mere 8% in 2008 to 14% in 2010 to reach 23% in the latest survey.

"Shopping via the Internet continues to grow. As many as 45% of European consumers have made at least one online purchase in the past year. This represents an increase of 2 percentage points since 2011 and a 5-point increase since 2010. With this growth rate, the proportion of Internet shoppers will have met or exceeded 50% by 2015, in line with the target set out in the Digital Agenda for Europe," reads the latest Consumer Conditions Scoreboard.

According to the Consumers' Index that mirrors their satisfaction of consumers with their position on the market, Croatia is at the bottom with 50 points, only Cyprus and Greece rank lower with 49 and 47 points respectively. Finland and Great Britain top the ranking with 73 points as their consumers regard themselves to be best protected.

"The index suggests that the countries with the best consumer conditions are Finland, the UK, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Ireland, Denmark, Austria, Sweden, Belgium, Germany and Portugal (all above the EU average). Outside the EU, a relatively high value of the index is registered in Norway. Consumer conditions appear to be less favourable in most of the eastern and southern Member States, with Greece, Cyprus, Croatia and Bulgaria recording the lowest values."

European Commissioner for Consumer Policy Neven Mimica welcomed the Scoreboard and said: "There has been progress notably in the spread of e-commerce but improvements are needed in other areas. The Scoreboard shows us where we should focus our efforts. It is our window on the market. Its outcome will be reflected in my future actions such as setting up the online-dispute resolution platform or better enforcing rules against unfair commercial practices."

In 2014, the European Commission will earmark EUR 450,000 for information campaign for consumers in Croatia. This is the usual practice of the Commission for newcomers.