In an effort to curb the number of consumer complaints from the automobile sector, the Department of Economic Development (DED) will be setting up Consumer Protection Counters at Dubai car showrooms by early 2017. The initiative aims for timely resolution of majority of consumer complaints at the showroom instead of DED offices.
According to DED statistics, the automobile sector ranked third in number of consumer complaints received in the first half of 2016, accounting for 15% of total complaints. Out of the 2,430 complaints received regarding the automobile sector, 73% are related to agreement disputes, refunds or defective products.
DED hopes that setting up Consumer Protection Counters at the showrooms will encourage traders and consumers both to resolve disputes amicably at the premises, thus avoiding unnecessary complications if the matter escalates enough to be raised before DED officials. Consumers will still have the option of raising the complaint with DED on the Ahlan Dubai number 600 54 5555.
Representatives of the CCCP (Commercial Compliance and Consumer Protection) department in DED visited large dealerships including Al Futtaim Motors, Juma Al Majid Automobiles and Al Rostamani Automobiles to review existing complaint handling counters (if any) and to further the plans for establishing the new Consumer Protection Counters.
DED standards dictate that the counter should be placed in a prominent location within the showroom and have bilingual staff to facilitate communication with consumers. Counter staff will be expected to maintain logs of all complaints along with actions taken for resolution.