Know your consumer rights

BAD BUSINESS PRACTICES: HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM FAULTY GOODS, POOR SERVICE The CPA aims to support and shield economic interests.

Everyone who ever had a problem with a product or service they spent money on knows that we have consumer rights, such as getting our money back for a faulty product. However, it is a good thing to know what exactly your consumer rights are and how to protect them.

Many countries will celebrate International Consumer Rights Day on Friday, to remember 15 March 1962 when US president John F Kennedy spoke about four basic consumer rights in a speech.

These rights were safety, to choose, to get information and to be heard when you complain.

The organisation Consumers International added four more basic consumer rights, namely the right to consumer education, fair compensation, a healthy environment and to have your basic needs satisfied.

Over the years, the consumer protection movement grew and various countries enacted legislation to protect consumer rights. In South Africa, the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) protects your rights as a consumer.

The CPA aims to support and protect the economic interests of consumers, give them better access to quality information to help them make informed choices, protect them from goods and services that could harm them and make it possible for consumers to receive compensation.

In addition, the CPA aims to ensure that consumers are educated on consumer issues and the results of their choices.

The CPA applies to every transaction in South Africa that is not specifically excluded, the advertising, marketing and selling of any goods or services by suppliers who are not excluded, transactions happening in South Africa and transactions where the supplier does not make a profit.

Other transactions between a supplier of goods or services and a consumer that are also covered by the Act include a club, trade union, association, society or other organisation, corporate or incorporated, with voluntary paid or free membership and an invitation to join a franchise and the transactions that follow, even if the franchise is a business with assets or turnover of more than R2 million per year.

The CPA does not apply to goods and services exchanged in a private sale between two or more consumers, goods and services supplied to government or supplied to a company with an annual turnover or asset value of R2 million or more at the time of the transaction.

Transactions that are part of a credit agreement under the National Credit Act (such as an instalment sale agreement, credit facility, credit card or loan) and services supplied under an employment contract are also excluded from the provisions of the CPA.

According to the CPA, the consumer is someone whom goods and services are marketed to, someone who has made a deal with a supplier, someone who uses a product or service in certain circumstances.

A small business, trust, partnership, body corporate or company with an annual turnover or asset value of R2 million or less is also regarded as a consumer.

A supplier, on the other hand, is a person or company who markets and provides goods or performs services in the ordinary course of business for consumers. A service provider is someone who promotes, supplies or offers to supply any service. However, if you sell a product or service as an individual to another consumer, you are not a supplier.

The CPA defines a transaction as an agreement between a consumer and one or more other people or companies to buy goods and services or the process of supplying the goods or services to the consumer for payment.

When it comes to consumer rights, the CPA protects these fundamental consumer rights: Equality in consumer market; Privacy;

Choice;

Disclosure and information; Fair and responsible marketing; Fair and honest trading; Fair, just and reasonable terms and conditions;

Fair value, good quality and safety; and

To be heard and receive a refund.

Your right to equality

Section 8 to 10 of the CPA stipulates that no-one is allowed to discriminate against you when marketing goods and services, but it sets reasonable grounds to treat you differently in certain circumstances, such as not selling cigarettes to minors.

Your right to privacy

Sections 11 and 12 deal with your right to restrict unwanted direct marketing and regulate times when companies may contact you.

Your right to choose

As part of your right to choose, sections 13 to 21 provide for your right to choose a supplier, when fixed term agreements expire or can be renewed, prior authorisation of repair or maintenance services and a cooling-off period after direct marketing.

Your right to information

Sections 22 to 28 provide for your rights to get information in plain and understandable language and know the price of goods or services.

Your right to fair and responsible marketing

Your right to fair and responsible marketing is entrenched in sections 29 to 39. These sections provide that bait marketing and negative option marketing are not allowed.

Suppliers are also banned from concluding agreements with people who are not commercially competent. Your rights regarding direct marketing are also covered.

Your right to honest trading

Sections 41 to 47 cover your rights to be treated fairly and honestly. Unscrupulous behaviour, false, misleading or deceptive representations, fraudulent schemes and offers and pyramid and similar schemes are not allowed.

This part of the CPA also gives you the right to assume that the supplier may sell the goods on offer. These sections also govern how auctions must be held, how goods can be exchanged, held, waived and replaced and how overselling and over-booking should be handled.

Your right to fair, just and reasonable terms and conditions

Sections 48 to 52 protect you from unfair, unreasonable or unjust contract negotiations. It stipulates that you must be informed of certain terms and conditions, that certain transactions, agreements, bargaining or conditions are unlawful and that the courts can ensure fair and just conduct, terms and conditions.

CPA does not apply to private sale deals

Your right to fair value, good quality and safety

In this part of the act, sections 53 to 61 provide for your right to fair value, good quality and safety when buying products or services. You have the right to demand quality service and receive safe goods of good quality.

Your right to be heard and refunded

This part of the Act deals with the protection of consumer rights, how the rights can be enforced, how complaints are resolved and when you can complain to the National Consumer Commission.