How to make them pay up!

While the legal protection is strong, it doesn’t matter what the rules are if the seller won’t obey them. Yet this isn’t always easy with the law, you need to learn how to sort out your own problems.

Yet don’t go militant unless you have to. The first easy step is to go back or phone the shop and explain the problem and your suggested resolution.

If you go in with confidence, saying you know what your rights are, chances are the store will sort your problem in a flash.

Sadly many staff in stores have no idea about the statutory rights under the Competition & Consumer Protection Act No. 24 of 2010* or the mandatory safety standards stipulated under the Standards Act** and several other pieces of legislation that partly deal with safety issues for consumers such as the Food and Drugs Act and Public Health Act, so you may come up against a brick wall. Yet stay calm, and if possible find them the law and politely ask to speak to a supervisor.

Before you go though, go through this simple …

Complaints Checklist

Know what outcome you want

When complaining, don’t get mad. Be cool, calm and rational and you’ll be more likely to get results than ranting and raving. Throw a temper tantrum and the company may be perfectly happy to lose your custom to get rid of you which makes the fight tougher.

Decide the answer to these three questions before you start:

• Do you want to exchange the goods / continue the service? 
  If you could get the goods fixed, or the service improved, would you be happy to accept that – if the answers yes, life is easier.

• Do you want a full refund? 
  While you may want a full refund you’re not always entitled to it if they can fix the problem – having said that, sometimes it’s just easier for them to pay up to have the problem solved.

• Do you want compensation and, if so, what kind? 
  Do you want money over and above just fixing or replacing a product, for the time or distress you’ve been caused? While this can happen it certainly complicates things so be reasonable and be sure you genuinely feel you’ve been unfairly put out.

Act as soon as possible

The crucial point here is whether you’ve been deemed to have ‘accepted’ the goods, while there’s no standard definition, as it depends on the circumstances, a couple of factors impact this:

• How long you’ve taken to respond
  One week is how long shoppers have to check if goods are shoddy, or service has been done properly and time in between depends on what’s reasonable for that specific thing.
  So while it could take three to four days to check that  your car has been repaired, you can tell in hours if a DVD player works.
  After this time, you’re likely to have accepted the goods and your rights are lowered.

• Have you altered the goods?
  The ‘accepted’ date will be earlier if you’ve altered something yourself, for example unlocking your phone handset to switch it to another network or adjusting the length of a pair of trousers/dress. Therefore the best route is simple…

Complain the instant you realise there’s a problem. The longer it’s left, the more likely you’ll lose your rights

If you complain without having been seen to accept the goods, then you can usually expect a full refund.

Stop using it as soon as you can

This could be tricky, especially if it’s a car or your bank. But the less you use something because of your annoyance; it adds greater weight to your complaint.

Do be careful about payment here though – if you’ve not paid in full beware cancelling payment as the company could continue to chase you for payment.

Keep a diary

Note down what went wrong, who you spoke to and when and what you agreed, if anything. This is more important if your original agreement was made verbally, as your complaint will be harder to prove.

Collect evidence

Use Pictures and other evidence to back up your case, such as receipts or terms and conditions. Receipts are essential to have (or give, nearly all stores do), other proof of purchase may be, cheques and bank statements. Yet don’t post originals to sellers, because you’ll need a back up.

Keep a log of any extra costs

Note down any extra costs you’ve had to pay, such as phone calls or replacing damaged items, so you can ask for the cash back. Ask to be reimbursed for additional costs; it is possible to get extra cash for inconvenience or distress.

If you’re forced to pay do it ‘under protest’

If the seller is forcing you to pay for something you’re not happy to cough up for, you have two options. One is to refuse and suggest they take you to court for the rest. The other, possibly a better option if they have something of yours, e.g. a Computer in for repair, is to say you are ‘paying under protest’. This will help your case if you need to take your complaint to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.

*Get in touch with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission for an explanation of this Law

** Get in touch with the Zambia Bureau of Standards for an explanation of this Law

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