Regulator issues complaints snapshot
The latest snapshot of complaints lodged with the Commerce Commission by consumers shows little variation in overall year-on-year numbers.
They were down by just 22 complaints to 9,870 for the 12 months ending June 30, 2021, when compared to 9,892 in the same period of 2019/20.
The regulator releases the annual snapshot to give an insight into consumer complaints during the year.
As in previous years, most of the complaints received related to the Fair Trading Act (FTA), which totalled 8,792. In addition, 331 were about the Commerce Act and 273 were about the Credit Contracts and Consumer Finance Act (CCCFA).
Of the FTA complaints, appliance and electronics retailers attracted the most with 579. There were 564 complaints about motor-vehicle traders, and 517 about supermarkets and grocery stores.
Commission chair Anna Rawlings says: “While we are not able to investigate every complaint, the information we receive through them is very valuable.
“We focus on issues that are likely to have the most impact on consumers and markets, and complaints help us to better understand where to focus our efforts.
“They also show us where consumers need better information about their rights and where businesses need more information to help them to comply with the law.”
Complaints inform the guidance and resources the regulator develops to help consumers and businesses, and the advice it gives to policy-makers about the laws it enforces.
“We want consumers to know that we want to hear from them and we value what they tell us,” adds Rawlings, pictured. “We also hope our complaints snapshot is useful to businesses looking to assess their own compliance.”
A complaint does not necessarily mean the law has been broken and larger industries are likely to generate more complaints because they have many more customers.
Changes to the FTA
In August, parliament passed the Fair Trading Amendment Bill 2019. This introduced important changes to the act, such as new protections to address unfair practices.
Changes that will come into effect on August 16, 2022, include:
• Traders cannot engage in unconscionable conduct. The term itself is not defined in the FTA, but there is a non-exhaustive list of factors to consider when assessing whether conduct is “unconscionable”. This includes whether unfair pressure or tactics or undue influence were used, and if parties acted in good faith.
• The unfair contract terms framework now covers standard-form small trade contracts, which previously only applied to standard form consumer contracts.
• Consumers can direct uninvited direct sellers to leave or not enter their property.
Other provisions come into force on August 17. These included:
• The broadening of management banning orders to capture a wider scope of conduct.
• Businesses selling extended warranties over the phone have five working days after the date the agreement is made to give consumers a written copy of these agreements.
Other changes
The government has introduced a range of changes to the CCCFA and associated regulations. These have come into effect in stages between December 2019 and December 2021.
