Consumer dept receives 60-70 complaints a day

The UAE Ministry of Economy’s Consumer Protection Department on average receives 60 to 70 complaints a day from the public for the violations.

A team from the Department looks into the matter and tries to resolve it and sometime refers it to other department in order to solve the issue. As a matter of fact some of the cases have been referred to the court for the violation of consumer rights.

A call centre has been set up to receive consumer complaints, which will work over 15 hours a day.

On Thursday, the UAE Ministry of Economy launched the seventh Gulf Consumer Protection Day under the theme ‘Rationalising consumption is our objective,” in cooperation with federal and local departments and the major retailers in the UAE. The month-long campaign will focus on strengthening awareness on consumer rights.

Sultan Al Mansoori, Minister of Economy, said the Gulf countries, particularly the UAE, have rolled out several effective plans to strengthen consumer confidence and promote market stability. He said the campaign is of strategic interest to all GCC countries for managing the consumer market efficiently.

The Minister reiterated the importance of strengthening the role of consumer protection in accordance with modern concepts. He said that the government's strategy 2011 - 2013 encourages innovation and R&D, strengthens the regulatory framework for key sectors and helps develop a business environment that ensures consumer protection.

Engineer Mohammed Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economy, in a speech delivered on his behalf by Dr Hashim Al Nuaimi, Director of Consumer Protection in the Ministry of Economy, at a press conference held in Dubai, stressed the focus of the Ministry to ensure best practices in consumer protection.

He said the Ministry of Economy has taken all required measures and procedures to strengthen consumer protection, manage price movement, drive fair competition, and coordinate with the concerned authorities to promote consumer awareness. Consumer education measures will be undertaken through meetings, lectures, visits to schools and universities, special exhibitions and seminars.

Dr. Hashim Al Nuaimi, Director of Consumer Protection in the Ministry of Economy, said the UAE leads the way in legislation regarding the protection of consumer rights in line with the Federal Law No. 24 of 2006 on the protection of the consumer.

He said that upon receiving any consumer complaints, the Ministry tries to resolve them amicably first or is transferred to reconciliation committee to settle disputes. The committee has a representative of the Ministry of Economy, the Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the Economic Development Department and the municipality in each emirate. If the issue cannot be resolved at this level, it is transferred to the concerned court.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.