Consumer Rights and

Responsibilities
 Outline

• Definition
• Consumer Rights
• Consumer Responsibilities
• Consumer Protection
• United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection
• International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN)
 Definition

• Consumer: One who pays to consume the goods and services produced by a
seller.
• Consumer can be a person or group of people, generally categorized as an end
user or target demographic for a product, good, or service.
• Goods may include consumable goods (like wheat flour, salt, sugar, fruits, etc.)
or durable consumer goods (like television, refrigerator, toaster, mixer, bicycle,
etc.). Services that we buy may include electric power, telephone, transport
service, theatre service, etc.
 Definition

• Caveat Emptor means: “Buyer beware”

• Customer always right
 Consumer Rights

• 1. Right to basic needs

• 2. Right to safety
• 3. Right to information
• 4. Right to choose
• 5. Right to redress
• 6. Right to consumer education
• 7. Right to a healthy environment
• 8. Right to Service
 Consumer Responsibilities

• 1. Right to basic needs • To be Informed

• 2. Right to safety • To Choose Carefully
• 3. Right to information • Use Products Safely
• 4. Right to choose • To Speak Out
• 5. Right to redress
• Seek a Remedy
• 6. Right to consumer education
• to Learn Consumer Skills
• 7. Right to a healthy environment
• 8. Right to Service
 Consumer Responsibilities

• Critical awareness
• Action
• Social concern
• Environmental awareness
• Solidarity
 Consumer Protection

• Practice of safeguarding buyers of goods and services, and the public,

against unfair practices in the marketplace.
• Consumer protection measures are often established by law.
• Prevent businesses from engaging in fraud or specified unfair practices in
order to gain an advantage over competitors or to mislead consumers.
 United Nations Guidelines for
Consumer Protection
• Objectives:
• (a) To assist countries in achieving or maintaining adequate protection for their population as consumers;
• (b) To facilitate production and distribution patterns responsive to the needs and desires of consumers;
• (c) To encourage high levels of ethic al conduct for those engaged in the production and distribution of
goods and services to consumers;
• (d) To assist countries in curbing abusive business practices by all enterprises at the national and
international levels which adversely affect consumers;
• (e) To facilitate the development of independent consumer groups;
• (f) To further international cooperation in the field of consumer protection;
• (g) To encourage the development of market conditions which provide consumers with greater choice at
lower prices;
• (h) To promote sustainable consumption.
United Nations Guidelines for
Consumer Protection
 United Nations Guidelines for
Consumer Protection

• Principles for good business practices

• (a) Fair and equitable treatment
• (b) Commercial behavior
• (c) Disclosure and transparency
• (d) Education and awareness-raising
• (e) Protection of privacy
• (f) Consumer complaints and disputes.
 United Nations Guidelines for
Consumer Protection
• Guidelines:
• A. National policies for consumer protection
• B. Physical safety
• C. Promotion and protection of the economic interests of consumers
• D. Standards for the safety and quality of consumer goods and services
• E. Distribution facilities for essential consumer goods and services
• F. Dispute resolution and redress
• G. Education and information programmes
• H. Promotion of sustainable consumption
• I. Electronic commerce
• J. Financial services
• K. Measures relating to specific areas
 International Consumer Protection and
Enforcement Network (ICPEN)
• Formerly the International Marketing Supervision Network (IMSN)
• Many members are also members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD).

ICPEN's core strategies to achieve our mandate are:

• To co-ordinate and co-operate on consumer protection enforcement matters.
• To share information and intelligence on consumer protection trends and risks.
• To share best practice information about key consumer protection laws, enforcement powers
and regulatory approaches to consumer protection.

ICPEN does not deal with the regulation of financial services or product safety.
International Consumer Protection and
Enforcement Network (ICPEN)
 International Consumer Protection and
Enforcement Network (ICPEN)
 International Consumer Protection and
Enforcement Network (ICPEN)
 Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD)
• Intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961
to stimulate economic progress and world trade.
• It is a forum and its members are countries which describe themselves as
committed to democracy and the market economy, providing a platform to
compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify
good practices and coordinate domestic and international policies of its
members.
• Headquarters are at the Château de la Muette in Paris.
• The OECD created agencies such as the OECD Development Centre (1961),
International Energy Agency (IEA, 1974), and Financial Action Task Force on
Money Laundering.
THANK YOU