Understanding your Rights as a Consumer All of us are consumer sand we will easily be able to recollect situations when we have been wronged by retailers. They may have made empty promises about their products or services, charged extremely high price for a substandard product, sold a faulty product and never returned calls. Often we feel helpless in these situations and let the retailers have their way. Most of us just stop going to them again and warn others of the poor services or products. Very few people seek recourse using their consumer rights and try to get what is rightfully theirs in the eyes of the law. Every nation has laws protecting consumers from unscrupulous vendors and companies that try to take advantage of customers. Many of us think that it is too much trouble and it is not for them and leave these things to consumer bodies and government organisations. This happens mainly because of ignorance regarding consumer rights. Most people receive very little education regarding consumer rights and statutory rights. However, we cannot simply blame the system. Ultimately, we pay the price so we should take initiative to understand our rights as a consumer. There are many resources available online that will educate us in dealing with retailers and service providers who take advantage of our ignorance in terms of our rights and privileges. To have a valid claim based on your consumer rights you must be a consumer who purchased a product or a service for personal use and not for business use. Consumers should not be intimidated by the size of the business that they are dealing with, as consumer law does not take into consideration the size of the business. Your statutory rights are provided by civil law. However, much of the consumer protection law is criminal law. If the trader that you are dealing with has committed a criminal offence, you will not be able to make a civil claim. It is the responsibility of relevant authorities to take action. Never approach the courts before understanding your rights clearly. This will save you a lot of time and it will save you from unnecessary stress. Before taking any action approach the dealer first and if necessary lodge a formal complaint. If they continue to ignore your complaint, you can then escalate it to the courts or a relevant trade body or ombudsman.
The financial services industry is highly regulated and companies selling financial products or advice must adhere to a stringent set of guidelines set out by the industry's independent regulatory body, the Financial Services Authority. The FSA has wide-ranging rule-making, enforcement and investigatory powers and your rights as a consumer are well protected.
The aim of the FSA is to ?promote efficient, orderly and fair markets and to help retail consumers achieve a fair deal? (source: www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/About/What/index.shtml), and it has four principle objectives: to promote confidence in the industry, to increase public understanding of the financial system, to protect consumers and to reduce financial crime.
Companies must be authorised by the FSA in order to sell financial products and services. This includes banks, building societies, investment companies, mortgage providers, insurance firms, financial advisors and pensions sellers. They must comply with the guidelines set out by the FSA in its Handbook. Broadly speaking, the rules that financial companies must follow are to:
be trustworthy and financially secure
provide clear information to help you make financial decisions, such as ?key facts? and ?key features? of products and services
give professional, competent advice
have clear and straightforward procedures for making a complaint
inform you about compensation methods
You can find out whether a company is authorised by the FSA by using the Check Service on the FSA's website.
If you have a complaint about a financial product or service you have bought, you should contact the company in the first instance. If the complaint isn't resolved to you satisfaction here, you should then contact an independent complaint scheme such as the Financial Ombudsman Service. The Ombudsman will carry out an impartial investigation into the complaint and will attempt to resolve it. You don't have to accept the Ombudsman's findings, but if you do they are legally binding on both you and the company with whom you have a complaint. If you don't agree with the findings and want to take the matter further, the next step is to take your case to court.
Banks and building societies also have their own voluntary code of conduct for promoting best practice and ensuring that customers are treated fairly and reasonably. Managed by the Banking Code Standards Board, it's known simply as the Banking Code and most major high street banks have signed up to it. Products and services covered by the Code include bank accounts, overdrafts, loans, credit cards and foreign exchanges.
Some of the key rules to which the participating banks and building societies agree to adhere are:
providing clear information on products and services and how they work
ensuring that promotional material and advertising are accurate and not misleading
keeping customers informed by sending regular statements and telling customers about changes to terms and conditions, charges or interest rates
acting promptly and fairly to deal with complaints when things go wrong
using safe and secure systems and keeping personal information confidential
promoting the Banking Code and ensuring that employees understand and abide by it
The Banking Code Standards Board isn't able to investigate individual complaints on behalf of consumers, but its helpdesk can provide useful information and support. If you have a grievance that you've been unable to sort out with the company concerned, you should take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
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