Product Safety Education is more relevant and necessary in the increasing growth of the digital economy that has rendered many transactions borderless and most players in business are invisible to the consumer.
As a major pillar of consumer protection Consumer education is aimed at changing individual behaviour from those that may sabotage one’s individual rights.
Here are 10 things consumers do that negatively impact their rights – especially during the busy shopping seasons:
1. Signing microcredit loan contracts without reading the terms and conditions of the loan.
2. Co-Signing as Guarantor without a clear understanding that the “debt is yours” if the borrower defaults.
3. Making loans to family members without a signed agreement and/ or issuing receipts.
4. Buying unknown electrical and digital brands for a fraction of the market price.
5. Putting money down on “lay-away” before shopping around.
6. Purchasing electrical appliances – blenders, fans, stoves, and refrigerators – without testing in the store, taking a photo of the barcode of product label, demanding proper receipt or a written warranty.
7. Buying paint from an unauthorized seller which often proves to be inferior in quality.
8. Purchasing construction supplies before you are ready to build. Demanding refund after five years without expecting to find; inflation, restocking fee.
9. Jewelry fashioned for a loved one as a surprise but rejected by the recipient.
10. Purchasing motor vehicle without a mechanic inspection or test drive.
Consumer protection is your right under the law but before completing a transaction consumers must do their research about the merchant, the product, price and refund policy.
CONTACT: FCR NEWS TEAM
