Kingdom joins consumer week with focus on rights

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia on Tuesday joined other Gulf countries to observe the GCC Consumer Protection Week under the slogan: “Our GCC and Consumers are one.”

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MCI) has launched a number of campaigns such as providing maintenance and original spare parts and ensuring quality, specifically related to warranty, under the title: “Warranty for Minimum Two Years”
The GCC member countries have reached an agreement for a “Unified System for Consumer Protection,” so as to promote and develop regulations and controls that guarantee the rights and needs of consumers, said an MCI official.
The ministry has been campaigning for the right of all consumers to get a two-year warranty as a minimum requirement for all electrical and electronic devices.
The official said that if the same technical fault is repeated for the third consecutive time in an electrical or electronic device during the warranty period, the consumer has the right to get it replaced with a new one or seek refund after deducting the depreciated value of the item.
The MCI will continue its campaign to support the consumers throughout the year so that they are aware of their rights and also know about misleading commercials through social or print media, he said.
The GCC countries celebrate the consumer protection week on March 1 every year with the participation of a number of government agencies, chambers of commerce and industry and companies.
The events will also focus on the consumer's role in cooperating with official authorities in combating commercial fraud and harmful business practices.
Recently, as part of its consumer protection program, the MCI also urged citizens to report cases of commercial concealment with evidence to authorities, adding that there is an opportunity for them to be rewarded for their honesty in the form of cash amounting to a maximum of 30 percent of the fines imposed on the violators.
Informants can dial the ministry’s toll free number 1900 or contact the department concerned of the ministry by fax or e-mail.
Meanwhile, the MCI has warned all GCC nationals, who are investing in the Kingdom, not to violate its Anti-Commercial Concealment Law.
In a statement , the MCI said it aims to clear off the phenomenon of commercial concealment and create a trading environment free of irregularities and violations so that citizens can practicing business safely.
Under this law, the offender is liable to two years imprisonment and a maximum fine of SR1 million, as well as deportation if the offender is an expatriate.
It is expected that the GCC citizens associated with the expatriate’s illegal activities will be blacklisted by the ministry, with his name publicized in the daily newspapers. Further, the business registration in question will be canceled for a period of five years.
In the light of the issue, the MCI recently released a statement warning all companies and individuals against cooperating with violators of commercial rules and regulations in the Kingdom.