New consumer protection law puts dodgy traders on notice

By Moses Michira

Users of public transport will stop guessing how much fare they pay back home at the end of their working day. This follows the enactment of a new law yesterday that seeks to protect consumers from unfair practices. For long, there has been no law guiding providers of public transport on the applicable rates depending on conditions such as weather and ease of traffic.

This has exposed millions of matatu passengers in major towns to arbitrary price increases everyday.   Banks will also be required to make full disclosure and tell borrowers how much they will pay as interest on credit before signing up for loans.

 Illegal business

 These are among a raft of measures contained in a new revolutionary law meant to protect consumers from exploitation.  President Kibaki yesterday assented to the Consumer Protection Bill 2011 which is anticipated to discourage illegal business practices that providers of goods and services have exploited to maximise their profits with little regard for the buyers’ interests.

The new law, which comes into effect immediately on appointment of Consumer Protection Committee, presents a major win for consumers who have been at the mercy of exploitative providers of goods and services, through misrepresentation of particulars of what they pay for.

Consumer lobbies have hailed the new law saying it will enable buyers get value for money while cushioning them from harmful goods and false information that is common in marketing gimmicks. 

“This is a major step in ensuring consumers get value for money,” said Stephen Mutoro, the chief executive of the Consumer Federation of Kenya (Cofek). “It will deter deceptive marketing and labelling — and eventually help improve the quality of goods and services offered.” Service providers like mechanics are now required to give an estimate of the costs of repair of motor vehicles before they begin the work, and the payable fee should not vary by more than 10 per cent.

 It is anticipated that the new law will make the cost of any goods or services easily predictable, with reasonable guarantee on its quality. Under the new law, representatives of members of the public or a class of consumers will also be allowed to sit on the board of regulatory bodies, such as the Central Bank of Kenya, the Insurance Regulatory Authority and the Communications Commission of Kenya. Previously, members of such boards were either Presidential or Ministerial appointees — a factor Cofek claims may have led to the enactment of regulations that are insensitive to the majority of the population. Members of the committee will also include representatives from the consumer organisations, the Kenya Bureau of Standards, the Kenya Medical Association and the Kenya Association of Manufacturers.

Consumers can move to court when aggrieved by either service providers or manufacturers of goods, where the offence is punishable by a fine not exceeding Sh1 million or a three years sentence, or both.