Ministry detects 30 violations of consumer protection law

Inspection campaigns carried out by the Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEC) in June resulted in the detection of 30 violations, it was announced Tuesday.

The violations included misleading or false product descriptions and advertising, failing to issue invoices in Arabic, failing to display prices, failing to comply with the mandatory bulletin of vegetables and fruits prices, failing to clearly specify the data relating to the displayed product, charging consumers higher than the advertised price, and increase in price of locally processed Australian meat.The penalties included administrative closures and fines ranging from QR5,000 to QR30,000 in line with the applicable consumer protection laws.In a press statement on Tuesday, the MEC said it intensified its inspection campaigns last month to ensure the compliance of suppliers (retail outlets) with Law No 8 of 2008 on Consumer Protection. The campaigns come within the framework of the ministry’s efforts to monitor markets and commercial activities in a bid to crack down on price manipulation and protect consumer rights.The following is a breakdown of the type and number of violations registered in June: false or misleading product description, advertising or labels – 6; failing to issue invoices in Arabic – 5; failing to clearly display service data, characteristics and prices – 3; failing to comply with the mandatory price bulletin of vegetables and fruits – 3; charging consumers higher than the advertised price – 3; failing to display the discount licence in a visible place on the store’s front during the discount period – 2; increase in the price of locally processed Australian meat    - 2; failing to use Arabic in data and advertisements related to offered goods – 1; failing to display all product-related data – 1; failing to display price – 1; lack of weighing scale in the bakery for the production of local bread – 1; offering discounts without obtaining a permit from the competent department – 1; and expired car tyre products – 1.The ministry stressed that it would not tolerate any violations of the Consumer Protection Law and its regulations and would intensify its inspection campaigns to crack down on violations. The MEC will refer those who violate laws and ministerial decrees to the competent authorities, who will, in turn, take appropriate action against the perpetrators in order to protect consumer rights.The ministry has urged all consumers to report violations through the call centre: 16001, email: info@mec.gov.qa, Twitter: MEC_QATAR, Instagram: MEC_QATAR and the app on iPhone and Android devices: MEC_QATAR