Cycle: 6

Class: Form 3s

Teacher: Ms. Kina Nicholas

Topic: Consumer Affairs

Subtopic: Role of Governments and agencies in Consumer Protection

Content:

How do Governments offer consumer protection?

Consumer Rights

CARCICOM member states are required to enact legislation that provides for a consumer’s
rights. These rights are largely to do with fairness and honesty in trading and with keeping
consumers safe, educated and informed of their rights.

Consumer Protection Legislation

Governments enact legislation to protect consumers, for example:

 The sale of Goods Act states that goods must fit the purpose for which they are sold
 The Hire Purchase Act gives consumers the right to:
 Information about the credit and cash price of the good and the terms and
conditions of a credit agreement
 Withdraw from the agreement
 Retain possession of goods
 The Trade Descriptions Act prohibits manufacturers and sellers from making false
or misleading statements about products they make or sell.

The Government department responsible for trade can limit or ban the importation of
certain dangerous or poor-quality products.

Consumer Protection Agencies

Governments established agencies to monitor issues in many areas.

Prices Commission

One way in which governments seek to protect consumers is through policies of price
control. Price Controls usually set out a maximum and a minimum that can be charged for
the specified goods or services. Price controls have been introduced in recent times within
the Caribbean, with the intention of keeping the cost of essential items of food at an
affordable level.

The Prices Commission:

 Controls prices by fixing the legal maximum percentage wholesale and retail mark-
up on some basic food items and some basic consumer durables such as
refrigerators, stoves and furniture.
 Publish the controlled prices in the official gazette and in newspapers, and requires
the price schedule be displayed by wholesalers and retailers
 Monitors and enforces the controlled prices through price control inspection and
possible prosecution of offenders who exceed them.

Public Utilities Board or Utilities Regulation Board

This board fixes prices that can be charged for utilities such as water, electricity or
telephone services. In Saint Lucia we have what is called the NURC.

National Utilities Regulatory Commission (NURC) is a multi-sector independent regulatory

body which succeeded the National Water and Sewerage Commission (NWSC). In addition to
regulating the water supply services and sewerage services, the NURC is now mandated to
regulate electricity supply services in Saint Lucia pursuant to the National Utilities
Regulatory Commission Act of No.3 of 2016.

National Standards Institute or Bureau of Standards

These agencies are responsible for:

 Determining the quantities, quality and types of ingredients that manufacturers

should include in their products, thereby establishing the overall level of quality of
the finished product.
 Issuing compulsory and voluntary standards
 Issuing standards for product labelling and packaging
 Testing goods for quality and safety
 Certifying locally produced products that meet acceptable standards by authorizing
the use of the institute of bureau’s mark of approval on the product.