Nine months later, man still is waiting on a part

FRIDAY, SEP. 28: One of the complaints we received last week came from a consumer who was clearly at his wits end.

I could hear the anger in his voice and it took me longer than usual to piece together the key details as he was angrily rattling on, ranting about how the business is giving him the run around and ignoring him.

He had paid for a part for his bike, a part he really needed, and was told that it would take a month for the part to come in.

After waiting nine months he still did not have the part. Nine months?

While I commended him on his patience I had to ask him why he waited so long to try and resolve the problem.

His response – what else could he do? Simple, I explained, ask for your money back and go elsewhere.

This business did not provide the product in a timely manner or in accordance with the delivery date as per their agreement and a breach had occurred, and failure to refund his money is a breach of the Consumer Protection Act 1999.

He simply had to write to the business requesting a full refund and, according to the Act, that business has up to 30 days to refund him in full. If he had done this many months ago he would either have had the part he needed by now or the refund.

This is not a one off incident; we get similar complaints frequently and most of the time there are two key things that could be done to avoid this kind of problem.

First, consumers should be aware of their rights and responsibilities under the law.  Second, businesses should be aware of the consumer’s rights and a business’s responsibilities under the laws that govern consumer transactions.

Had this gentleman known that he was entitled to a full refund under the Consumer Protection Act 1999 he probably would not have waited so long to resolve the problem?

Similarly, if the business knew that it was in violation of the Consumer Protection Act 1999, a criminal offence that is liable on summary of conviction to a fine of $10,000 or imprisonment for six months, they may have tried to resolve this issue sooner.

As a result of this particular issue this business lost a customer and runs the risk of losing even more customers once this gentleman spreads the word about his bad experience.

Bermuda residents should be aware of those laws that exist to make sure that traders deal fairly with consumers.

They exist to protect the consumer, but businesses also benefit because these laws not only outlaw disreputable business practices but also offer guidance for good business practices, encourage fair competition between businesses and offer businesses better protection from anti-competitive practices.

In the unfortunate event that a business does not abide by these laws, awards of damages can be made against it, hefty fines can be levied and/or key personnel can face imprisonment.

Finally, whether you are a customer or a business, when faced with a problem to solve, address it as soon as the issue arises.

Start by knowing your rights and responsibilities under the local laws.

Once you know this information you will understand how you should go about resolving the issue and then you should act immediately.

All of this information is readily available, for consumers and businesses, on the Consumer Affairs web-site, www.ca.gov.bm.

I encourage everyone to take the time to read and understand this information, which by the way is there in its original legalese as well as in layman’s terms for those of us who may find Acts in their original form, difficult to understand.

Honey Adams is the education officer for Consumer Affairs.