Goods and services must be provided equally to everyone without any discrimination. The prohibition of discrimination applies to all providers of goods and services whether they belong to the state or a municipality or are privately owned.
You must not be denied goods or services only because you belong to a certain race, nationality, religion or some other objective characteristics.
Goods and services
Goods and services include buying and selling things in shops, markets and other outlets, or going to restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels and entertainment venues such as clubs, cinemas, theatres or sporting venues, such as gyms, swimming pools, etc. This also includes access to services provided by banks, insurance companies, and other types of service providers.
Scope
Discrimination in the provision of goods and services can include cases where a service provider refuses to sell goods or provide a service. Discrimination in this context may also include degrading or insulting remarks, the offer of different contract terms, such as a higher price only because you are of a certain age, race, or sexual orientation or have other objective characteristics that are prohibited grounds of discrimination.
example A cinema must not deny you entry because you are in a wheelchair. A club must not introduce a different ticket price because you are a male as it will violate the prohibition of discrimination.
Slovakian law explicitly prohibits discrimination in access to goods and services on all grounds protected by the anti-discrimination legislation, if the providers are legal entities or natural persons – entrepreneurs. The law thus does not apply to natural persons who do not provide a service as a business. In certain cases, providers of goods and services can choose specific types of clients by applying the exception of genuine requirement.
What human rights violations may there be?
The prohibition of discrimination will be violated if you have been denied goods or services or received them in poor quality only because you belong to a certain race or nationality, or you are a person with a disability or possess other characteristics that are prohibited grounds of discrimination.
How to complain
If you believe that you may have been discriminated against by a private seller of goods or a service provider, you may file a complaint to the Slovak Trade Inspection or to the court of general jurisdiction.
If you believe that you have been discriminated against by a state or municipal seller of goods or a service provider, you may also submit a complaint to a higher institution or to a special organ of supervision and control established by law, and afterwards, to the court.
Read more about how to complain.