By The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has found 33 businesses in the Free State to be non-compliant to the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) by selling expired foods and not displaying prices of the items on the shelves.
The Free State province has been dubbed the worst when it comes to consumer exploitation. Consumers are sold hazardous products to their health and safety and are charged exuberant prices compared to other provinces in South Africa.
The NCC conducted a week long market monitoring inspection raids in the province in March this year during the World Consumer Day in partnership with the then Department of Economic, Small Business Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (DESTEA) and other relevant regulatory bodies within the eco-system.
According to the NCC, during the inspections, suppliers of foodstuffs, renewable energy products (batteries and solar products), various household items as well as textiles and clothing were inspected. Following the inspections which pointed to non-compliance with the CPA, the NCC commenced investigations that were completed in July 2024.
The Commission issued Compliance Notices to thirty-three (33) non-compliant suppliers of goods in the Free State who contravened several sections of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA)
The investigations found that the businesses were selling basic foodstuffs which are perishable items, that had either long passed their sell-by date or had no shelf-life or date markings affixed on them, which has the potential to cause harm to consumers and risk their lives,
Not displaying prices of goods, either on individual items or on shelves: Providing two-months warranty on goods as opposed to a six-months warranty as provided for in the CPA, particularly solar panels, UPS, batteries, solar lights, and inverters, or: Issuing sales records indicating “no refund, no exchange or return on goods”, and generally lopsided terms and conditions favouring suppliers.
“These investigations further revealed that suppliers repackage items like rice, mealie-meal, baby formula, and nuts, into small packages, where these repackaged items are not labelled. Consumers can only rely on the information provided by the supplier in as far as the nutrition or content of those items, which compromises the quality of goods.
During the first inspections in March, to which there were subsequent follow-ups, suppliers were instructed to address all identified contraventions to ensure compliance with the CPA. At the time of the follow-ups, these suppliers had failed or ignored to address the contraventions and were thus further investigated,” said the NCC Acting Commissioner Mr Hardin Ratshisusu.
“As we continue to inspect various suppliers throughout the country, we will not hesitate to take decisive steps against non-compliant suppliers. These Compliance Notices give the suppliers a clear instruction on what to do to remedy the contraventions. Failure to comply with the Compliance Notices will lead to further proceedings before the National Consumer Tribunal,” he concluded.
